


Phylax

by Crys88



Category: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-10 04:28:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 26,134
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27677381
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Crys88/pseuds/Crys88
Summary: Phylax: Ancient Greek: watcher, protector, sentinel, guardianBennett Lancaster grew up in her small hometown with her head full of stories of heroes, from the latest action flick to the oldest of Greek myths. Going into private security and moving away from her home, she knew would bring her adventures. She never imagined that is would put her in the middle of the next generation of heroes.
Relationships: Natasha Romanoff/OC, Tony Stark & oc (platonic)
Kudos: 5





	1. Prologue

Mrs. Bethany Lancaster watched her four older children as they ran out of the house. Nora would watch the three little ones and it would give her some peace and quiet as long as the baby stayed asleep. Thirty solid minutes with no disasters was a small miracle. It gave her time to catch up on housework, which she had lacked since baby number five, Zach, arrived. She checked on the three month old before turning back to the chores at hand.   
She had the most recent pile of laundry folded and stacked the only thing left was matching the socks. That was when she heard the scream.   
“Momma!” Beth looked up to see her 6 year old daughter, Bennett racing towards the house. Her face red and there were obvious tear tracks. Panic. That was what was in her daughter’s face. She ran to the yard meeting her half way. The girl was crying so hard that understanding her words was near impossible. “Fitzy, Fitzy. Momma...Fitzy.” Beth scooped the crying girl in her arms and headed farther into the open fields. “Nora, Leo,” she called for her two oldest children.  
Bennett buried her head in her mother’s shoulder. “Fitzy.”   
Bethany’s heart raced as she ran towards the distant call returned by her 15-year-old daughter. “Momma. Help it’s Fitz.”   
The sight that met Bethany Lancaster’s eyes was one that every mother fears. A small body lay in the creek, blood soaked through his short blonde hair. His face pale and lips blue. Bethany handed the crying Bennett to Nora and knelt by the boy. “What happened?” She felt for a pulse and then listened for a breath but found neither.   
“I don’t know. We were playing in the field. Fitz wanted a turn with the kite but Leo had it. The next thing I remember we were here and Fitz was like this.” The older girl took deep breaths trying to calm herself to take care of her sister.   
Bethany began the process of CPR knowing it was no use. She sent Leo to the house to call 911. Blood slid down the creek bed as she tried to pump life back into her young son.   
“Fitzy!” Bennett cried, kicking Nora sharply in the leg so the older girl would drop her. As soon as she hit the ground the girl scrambled to her twin brother. “Fitzy, wake up,” her tears dripped to his cheeks, “Fitzy!”   
When the ambulance arrived it was too late. Bennett cried in her mother’s arms pleading for her brother to get up. Nora had returned to the house shortly after Leo and was caring for Zachary.  
Bennett’s mother clung tightly to the girl. Small bloody handprints appeared on the fabric of her shirt as the girl fought to reach her brother as the coroner zipped the body bag. Fitz’s face disappearing from their view. The small girl went weak in her mother’s arms. Sobs wracked her body as she cried. Her brother’s name came out as only a whimper. Bethany Lancaster allowed her first tear then holding her daughter as her son was taken away. 

Frost coated the ground of the small park closest to Stark tower. Normally Bennett would take her bike out of town to a small nature trail nearby, today there wasn’t time. The steady pounding of her sneakers hitting the pavement was Bennett's sole focus. After a nightmare an early morning run was soothing. The cold morning air brushed against her face, turning her cheeks and nose rosy. Her breath froze in the air in front of her. 18 years had passed since that day and she still felt the loss. If she managed to outrun her memories during the light of day, they always caught back up to her in her sleep.  
Back at Stark Tower again Bennett made her way to the gym. She pushed her short hair back out of her face, and made her way to the heavy bag. The bag buckled under the weight of her first few punches. The rough leather grated against her knuckles as she tried to bleed out the last of her nightmare.  
For a year and a half Bennett had held a job in security at Stark Industries, as Tony Stark’s personal bodyguard. She had been with Pepper through every second of the incident in Afghanistan. She had helped Tony weather the introduction of Ironman and subsequent fall out.   
Tony was the first big job Bennett had in her field of choice. She had applied for numerous other positions at companies around the city but was passed over because she was too young or inexperienced. Today marked her 24th birthday.   
She was qualified for the job. Top of her class at the academy, marksmanship was in the top 5%, hand to hand combat top 3%, surveillance and observation top 7%. The problem came in because she didn’t look 24. She didn’t even look 20 most days. On a really good day the blonde could pass for 21 but most days about 16 or 17. Resembling a teenager was not exactly intimidating. The clothes Pepper bought, and Tony paid for, helped. Pepper insisted though, that this was an asset. It made it easier for her to fade into the background. Unassuming and nonthreatening. So when she selected Bennett’s work attire, it was professional but always carried a young, carefree air to it. Usually in the form of colored Converse, lightly distressed jeans, or a graphic tee under her button down or jacket.   
Tabloids had been fun the first couple months after she was noticed. According to those reporters Bennett was Tony Stark's love child from his wild youth. The papers had new stories released every week. "Birth mothers" were lining up to back their stories. There were a few similarities between Bennett and Tony. Skin tone, brown eyes, although his were a darker brown than hers, and a few other overlapping "roguish features", to quote Tony. But past that nothing. The women claiming to be her mother, ranged from hispanic to Irish, from waitresses to swimsuit models. Each story was more ridiculous than the last. Simple math would disprove every one of the women, they were all too young. As would Bennett’s nearly platinum blonde hair. Seriously not one paper thought to find a blonde.

Quick punch combos rocked the bag on it's chains. The bag caved around her heel as she sunk a kick in. The bag was inviting. Granting a release. The anger and fear. The nightmares, the memories. A release for all of it. Bennett poured them all into the bag where they would stay buried in the sand contained in the canvas. She worked the bag over and over, punch after punch, blow after blow. The combinations becoming more deadly as she worked.   
Tony entered the room watching the girl work and the bag rocked on it’s chains. He watched not wanting to interrupt her. Her fist slammed hard into the bag and he winced. She seemed to deflate holding on to the bag. Letting out an exhausted breath she whispered, "Happy birthday, Fitz"  
He gave her another moment heart breaking slightly at the sight. Opening the door and shutting it again Tony approached her as if he had just gotten there. "As my bodyguard, are you not supposed to be aware of your surroundings? I mean if I can sneak in on you anyone can." He crossed the room towards her. "You gonna talk about it this time?"  
"I am supposed to be aware of threats, I would hardly classify you as a threat," she walked over taking the bottle from his hand for a drink. The liquid had barely touched her tongue when she spit it out, gagging. "What on earth are you drinking?" She opened the bottle giving the substance a tentative sniff, it was thick and green.  
"It's, uh, protein shake from one of those MMA magazines you get."  
"Why is it green?" The blonde sniffed it again, wrinkling her nose at the smell.  
“Kelp?” Tony took a moment to answer.  
“Your answer to that shouldn’t be a question,” she quipped, handing the bottle back and turned to get water from the small fridge.  
Tony nodded towards her hand, “you’re bleeding.”  
She looked down examining the knuckles. Sure enough the skin was broken on the first two knuckles of each hand and the rest were smeared with blood. “It’s probably just a little scratch.”  
He gave her a disbelieving look. “You never even let me look at the bag without wrapping my hands.”  
“It’s fine, Boss. It looks worse than it is,” she shrugged it off. “Go grab your mouthpiece and meet me on the mats.” Bennett headed into the locker room to grab her mouthpiece and take care of her hands. She knew better, but the rough material of the bag had felt good. Pain always brought relief. Physical pain was manageable.   
Turning the water on she waited the few seconds it would take for it to heat. She ran her hands under the water scrubbing them clean. The water diluted the blood. Bennett squeezed her eyes shut as her nightmare rushed back. The onslaught of images making her slightly nauseous. Wiping her hands dry the skin looked new. It had knit itself back perfectly. That’s why it had escaped her notice, something small like that was less bothersome than a mosquito bite. There is no telling how many times the skin had broken for them to bleed that much. In the most extreme case so far her healing factor was effective enough to heal 12 gunshot wounds simultaneously. So a busted knuckle from the heavy bag was something she wasn’t worried about.   
Wrapping her knuckles she returned to the gym, mouthpiece in hand. Many things are socially acceptable now. Many things the government has legalized. They tolerated Ironman. There were rumors of Captain America being found. Talk of other survivors of genetic experiments. Negotiations for the rights of Inhumans. One thing that had not been changed, that had not been legalized, had not been repealed. The Mutant Registration Act.   
Mutation was still seen as an abomination, an affront to nature. Mutants were closely monitored if they managed not to be thrown in jail. To date only three mutants from the registration had not been incarcerated for any length of time, and only because their mutations were purely cosmetic. Horns and tails posed no real threat to humanity's safety. It would be safe to say Tony didn't know about her abilities. No one knew, not even her parents. She intended to keep it that way. She pulled on her fingerless gloves and headed back into the gym.  
Ground fighting was the order of the day. After reviewing some of the pins and chokes they had worked on they began to grapple.  
Round 1: 2 minutes, submission, guillotine, Bennett.   
Round 2: 45 seconds, submission, arm bar, Bennett   
Round 3: 3 minutes, submission, Darce choke, Bennett.   
It continued for seven rounds. Some of the rounds could have been shorter but Bennett liked to play a bit. The third round for instance had taken so much time because Bennett wanted to win with the Darce choke. Other times she just drug the fight out to make Tony work harder. Tony got close a few times. After each round the blonde showed him how to lock in the choke to prevent escape.   
Training with Tony was a good warm up for the day and Bennett truly loved teaching him. He didn't really need it. He had the suit. Hand to hand combat was kinda obsolete against that.   
"Okay," he coughed, tapping the mat to signal Bennett to let go. "I'm done. Besides we have a full day." He stretched to work out the kinks in his spine from the fights.   
Bennett pulled up the schedule on her phone, the Stark tech projecting the application off the screen for her. "We have 30 minutes to clean up, eat, and get to the board meeting."  
He nodded drinking from the bottle of green goo. "Thanks, kid. Next time I am going to win one." She chuckled, pulling her gloves off before heading back upstairs to change.

The meeting seemed to drag on and on. No matter how many of these things she sat through Bennett never could find it in herself to follow along. The phone buzzed in her pocket. A new text.   
Tony: kid, watch this.  
A few seconds passed and one of the board members grew noticeably irritated before he swatted the air. Upon closer inspection Bennett could see a small black object darting around the man’s head. Bennett would have simply assumed it to be a fly except for the small red light blinking from it. Almost indiscernible.   
Tony flicked his fingers across his phone and the small object darted at the man again. It was a drone. The man grew more distracted by the second. Bennett and Tony bit back their laughter.   
“Tony,” Pepper snapped, “do you have anything to contribute?”  
“Uh,...no I think you covered it rather eloquently,” he tapped his screen once more before shoving the phone back in his pocket. Bennett watched the drone zip away probably to some charging dock across the building.   
“If no one has any new business I think we can adjourn,” Pepper dismissed the board members with a smile. As the last man stepped out she turned a glare toward the two. Focusing on Tony she spoke “do you think this is a game, I am trying to run a company here, your company. You could at least pretend to care.”   
Pepper dragged Bennett and Tony upstairs. If Tony kept this up he would run the company into the ground. He needed to take his responsibilities seriously. Happy met them in the kitchen where lunch was being served. JARVIS with the help of a bot or two had prepared a salad with grilled chicken.   
Bennett inwardly groaned kelp shakes and now salad. Tony was on a health kick, which meant it was time to stock up on junk food.   
Pepper excused herself when she received a call from one of the overseas investors during lunch leaving Tony, Bennett, and Happy alone for a moment. "Tonight's the night, right? Are you sure you wanna do this kid?" Tony leaned back in his seat trying to make his voice sound casual.  
Bennett’s face lit in a smile. "I think so. Emily and I have been together for two years. Our lives fit together seamlessly. We have talked out our plans for the future together. Almost never fight." She chuckled lightly. "Everyone says that proposing is nerve wracking. But I thought it all through and planned it out. Honestly I'm not nervous at all. We fit too well together. She's gonna say yes." Bennett took the small box from her pocket examining the ring.   
Tony held out his hand and she passed the box over. Tony nodded his approval before handing the ring to Happy.  
"Not a bad choice, kid. You want me to drive you tonight. I could get the limo."  
Bennett tucked the ring back in her pocket. "No I got it. Gonna take one of Tony’s cars and pick her up, take her to her favorite restaurant. That I can pass off as birthday privileges. Limo would be a bit over the top. Might tip her off."   
"Public proposal? At the restaurant? Pretty gutsy." Tony quipped.   
"No, she wouldn't want that kind of attention" Bennett shook her head, "a walk in the park after, to a spot I know she loves. I'll ask her there." Bennett could see it all in her mind from the bench by the lake to the smile on Emily’s face. Tonight was going to change everything. Tonight would be the start of a new life, a better life.  
Happy's phone buzzed. "Sorry, Pepper needs me to pick up someone at the airport. If I don't make it back in time, good luck, kid." He smiled before running out the door.   
"Benn are you really sure about this? Not a doubt in your mind that Emily is the one?" Tony wore a serious expression. "You're young. Not many people find their soulmate at 24."  
“I didn’t,” Bennett smirked, ”we met when I was 22."  
Tony's expression grew more serious if possible."Benn. This is a big decision. I don't want to see you heartbroken if things don't work down the road. Just make sure you have thought this through. Does Emily really make you happy?"  
The blonde gave his words careful consideration before replying. "I think so. I mean we've had rocky places sure. Everyone does, but I think she makes me happy."  
Tony locked his gaze with hers "marriage is a lifetime thing."   
"Who are you and what have you done with Tony?" He didn't even smirk at the attempted joke. Bennett let out a deep sigh "I know it's a lifetime thing. I am prepared to sacrifice a lifetime if she needs me to.” She let the silence hang for a few seconds before allowing a smirk to slide in place, “Pepper is gone for the day and Happy is out so...Smash bros showdown." Tony didn't move immediately but the corner of his lips turned up. " Come on, Boss. It will get my mind off things."  
He gave a sigh before a genuine smile spread across his features. "Alright, best of 75. If I win I get your bike for a week if you win you can use my suit."  
"No safety mode?" Bennett cocked one brow in question.  
"Weapons hot." He held out his hand which she in turn took shaking it.   
"Deal."  
Several hours later Pepper walked into the common area to Tony's shouts of victory and Bennett’s groans of defeat. "The bike is mine for the week." He crowed.   
"Yeah, yeah," She scowled at the tv screen “you can use the Harley or the Honda this week.”  
“No I get the Ducati,” he insisted.  
“The original deal said you get my bike for a week not which one. You should be more specific next time, I have seven.” She smirked.   
"Well, well." They both jumped at the new voice spinning to see Pepper standing in the doorway. "I see you two got a lot done today."  
"It was bonding time, really." Tony explained.   
Bennett shot a cheeky grin towards the older woman shrugging, "while the cat's away…"  
"Obviously." A soft smile played on her lips even as she tried to hide it. "Bennett, don't you have to be somewhere in an hour?"  
She tapped the screen on her phone, her Ducati lit up in the background as she checked the time. "Crap. Yeah thanks Pep." Jumping up from the couch the girl pressed a kiss to Pepper’s cheek before heading to the doorway.   
"Are you both coming back tonight? I have a few things saved for the occasion. Wanted to celebrate a little with you, both of you.” Tony explained.  
“More than likely. But Tony: no party! If you guys want to say “hi” and stuff fine, but no extras. No party.” Bennett set the rules for Tony’s “celebration”.  
"Alright. Be safe and have fun tonight" Tony wrapped her in a tight hug. "Good luck, kid."  
“Thanks, boss." Pepper pulled the girl in for one more hug as she rushed to her room.   
Bennett pulled up to Emily’s apartment at 6:30 sharp. Knocking at the door she rocked back on her heels as she waited for Emily to answer, a bouquet of roses in hand.   
“Bennett!” Emily opened the door with a broad smile. She leaned forward pulling the blonde into a kiss. “Those for me?” She asked, pulling away for a second.   
“Who else would they be for?” Bennett pecked her lips again.   
She took the roses, “I’ll just put these in water right quick,” she slipped inside pushing the door closed before Benn could follow. Seconds later she came back out, “ready to go?” Her smile was bright as she took Bennett’s hand, heading to the car.   
Bennett opened her door for her, before climbing in the driver's seat. They drove and talked, laughing occasionally. The blonde couldn’t keep the smile off her face.  
The night started at an art gallery. Emily led Bennett through the gallery pointing out her favorite pieces. They talked over the exhibits as they went. Emily gushed over a large metal sculpture in the middle of the museum. She rattled on talking about lines and angles to convey the artist’s meaning. Benn nodded along and agreed when she was asked what she thought. Her only real thought about the piece though was the welds were crap.   
Bennett lagged a bit behind as they came across an exhibit of statues from Greece. Athena, Artemis, and Apollo were displayed alongside sculptures of gorgons, minotaurs, and chimaeras. Emily tugged her along to finish up the last few exhibits.   
When they pulled up to the restaurant Bennett quickly hopped out of the car, rushing around the front of the car to open Emily’s door. Bennett held out a hand and Emily took it. Her hand resting in the blonde’s made Benn feel as if Emily trusted her with her whole world. It was a responsibility the young bodyguard was happy to take on.   
“This really isn’t necessary, Bennie,” she tucked her hand around Bennett’s arm, “but thank you.”   
Dinner was slightly more expensive than she had originally planned but for tonight it would be worth it. Next stop was the nature park. They walked through the park under the stars hand in hand. The little box bounced in her pocket as they neared the spot.  
Bennett took in the night sky. North star was straight ahead. Ursa Major and Ursa Minor. A story of jealousy. Zeus’ wife Hera was jealous of Callisto after Zeus fell in love with her. So Hera changed her into a bear. Callisto was hunted for years. Zeus and Callisto had a son named Arcas. When he grew Arcas became a great hunter, he was moments away from unknowingly killing his mother but Zeus interfered. Sending them into the sky creating the two constellations.   
“Bennie,” Emily pulled her from her thoughts. “Bennie babe, what is it about them that you find so fascinating?” She gestured towards the heavens.  
“Everything. The stories, history, science…”   
Smiling Emily pulled her girlfriend around to face her. She beamed at the blonde, “you always have your head in the clouds, aren’t there more interesting things down here on the ground.” She pulled Bennett in close for a kiss, wrapping her arms around her neck deepening the kiss.   
Bennett pulled away after a moment, leading Emily further into the park.   
Bennett steeled herself. “Em, I wanted to talk to you about something.”  
“Of course. I wanted to talk to you about something too,” she followed happily.   
“You go ahead,” Bennett said, “what did you want to talk about?”  
“No, no, go ahead, it can wait,” she threaded her fingers through Bennett’s.   
“Well,” they came to the spot by the edge of the lake. Taking a deep breath Bennett began her speech “Emily, we have been together for two years now. You helped me adapt to New York, out of the security of my college campus. New York is quite a bit bigger than I am used to,” a grin spread across Bennett’s face, one side slightly higher than the other. Lopsided.   
Emily placed her hand on Bennett’s cheek leveling out her smile “Yeah, your little “no where” Texas is a bit tiny. Population of what, 23?”  
“That wasn’t the population, that was the size of my graduating class,” Bennett gave her an indignant look. “Give me some credit.” Emily laughed. “I couldn’t have made it this far without you, and I don’t want to spend any of my future without you by my side. So Emily, will you marry me?” Bennett pulled the ring from her pocket and waited for her answer. 

Bennett parked the car in the garage, killing the engine. She walked in the living area to see Tony, Pepper, and Happy all waiting. Champagne on ice. She let out a long sigh, there was no way to avoid them.   
Tony was grinning from ear to ear when she entered, “hey kid, how did it go?” He looked over her shoulder. “Where’s Emily?”   
The girl plastered a smile on her face. “I...not as planned.” she ran her hand through her hair, brushing her bangs behind her ear only for them to fall back in her face, too short to stay tucked.   
“What do you mean?” Pepper was concerned.   
“Turns out we...don’t want exactly the same things. Her future and mine... there’s this other girl, Madison. Emily has been with her for most of our relationship.” They were all dumb struck. She pulled the box from her pocket, setting it on the coffee table in front of the couch. “Guess I will have to figure out the return policy for that in the morning.” She gave the others a half hearted smile. “I think I am going to bed. Good night.” Apparently Tony was right, no one finds their soulmate at 24.


	2. Part 1 Ch. 1 Young

Three months later.  
“You ready for this kid?” Tony’s voice rang through her earpiece.   
“Go big or go home, boss,” Bennett smiled, answering over her com. It was the grand opening of the Stark Expo and Tony planned on making it the event of the century. Even with 90 years left in this century.  
“You sure this isn’t too extreme?” he questioned.   
"For anyone else, yeah. For you jumping out of a plane might be a bit lowkey,” the blonde pressed herself against the wall of the small changing room as another of the “dance team” girls bumped her. This one too was wearing next to nothing. That makes 5 in the last half hour. They might have been comfortable in the small changing room, stripping in front of each other but it was completely out of her comfort zone.   
Tony insisted they had to have a member of the security team in the room at all times as well as posted outside the doors. As there was only one female member of the security that job got handed to Bennett. “The twenty “Rockettes” running around me and stretching out before your big show, that might qualify as extreme."  
“Not enjoying the show? I chose that job especially for you. We could trade spots.” Tony's voice held a touch of laughter in his tone. “Seriously not one of them is hot in your book?”  
“Not the time, boss.”  
“There is one?” He perked up. “We will compare notes after the show.”  
“Just get ready to jump,” she said, checking the time. “Alright ladies. Showtime.”  
Bennett, Pepper, and Happy stood backstage as the show started. Music blared and the girls began their routine. Tony touched down on the rotating platform with perfect timing. The suit started to remove itself piece by piece. By the time it finished a few rotations, Tony stood in a tux with his trademark smile as the girls struck their final pose.   
After Tony’s speech welcoming everyone to the Stark Expo people began to mix and mingle. Finally pushing through the press to his car with Happy’s help they made it outside. “So kid how was it?”  
“Your speech?” He nodded. “It was great except that whole part about no one being man enough to go toe to toe with you. If I remember right last time we went toe to toe you ended up face down on the canvas with my knee in your spine.”  
“Coming from anybody else, that might sound kinky,” Tony quirked an eyebrow, then let out an involuntary shutter.   
“Look what we got here, the new model,” Happy nodded toward the car with a too bright smile.  
Tony looked the car over but also the woman leaning against it, “does she come with the car?”  
“I certainly hope so. Hi,” Happy introduced himself. Tony followed immediately after,   
The woman was a U.S. Marshal and was there to make sure Tony was at his hearing the next morning. He had to be in D.C. by 9 a.m.   
“Happy you wanna take Tony or go brief Pepper?” Bennett asked, preparing for a long night babysitting Tony.   
“No, no, no, you have to be at this club,” Tony pulled a business card from his jacket pocket, “in 45 minutes.” He reached in the back seat of the car. “Your Ducati is waiting for you at the south entrance.” He handed over her helmet, keys, t-shirt and leather jacket. “Some guy named Jax said he would meet you there?”  
“Are you sure it was Jax?” Bennett asked. Tony gave a nod in reply. “Did he say why? Are you sure you don’t need me boss?” she flipped the visor on the helmet back and forth as she spoke.   
“Happy and Pepper can handle this one. Stop that, you’re gonna break it,” he swatted her hand to stop her fidgeting. “When I get back though we need some Tony and Benn hang time. I have something to show you in the lab.” He climbed in the car.  
“Yes sir,” she gave a two finger salute before heading toward her bike.  
“Benn?” He called and she turned, “be safe.”  
She sent a “Stark smirk” back “always am. Drive safe.” With that he and Happy sped off. Why would Jax want to meet her? They might still be friends but she wouldn’t expect it. After...  
She made her way around the corner unbuttoning the stuffy white shirt and blazer, stripping down to the tank top underneath. She pulled on the t-shirt and the matching button up. After getting to the south entrance she threw on her jacket. Her bike was sitting in the closest parking spot, polished and gleaming. A custom Ducati, red with black and silver trim. A birthday present from Tony, which meant he had customized it even more than from the factory. She wadded up the shirt and blazer and shoved them in the storage compartment under the seat.   
The engine roared to life at the first kick. She revved the throttle a couple times, catching the attention of a brunette a couple cars down. Bennett slid on her helmet, giving the woman a shy smile before peeling out of the parking lot speeding up town to the club.   
The music pulsed and the lights flashed as she approached the entrance for the private club. She had to wait in line for a few minutes before she got to the bouncer at the door. “Party name?” He asked.  
“Jaxon Hennings.” Bennet replied fidgeting with her helmet.  
“Mr. Hennings,” the man gave a broad smile, “yes, a party of six. Your name?”  
“Bennett Lancaster.” He gestured, her through directing her to one of the more private booths in the back.   
Bennett met Jaxon Hennings on their first day of college. Co-ed dorms. They had private rooms that unfortunately shared a bathroom. As might be expected when rooming two 18-year-olds of the opposite sex that close, the first thing he did was try to flirt. She tried to let him down easy by telling him he wasn’t her type. He didn’t take it as easy as she had hoped. A small fight over the shared space of the bathroom broke out the first weekend of their college experience. It quickly escalated to an all out war.   
The adversity between the two was palpable. He “accidently” walked in while she was in the shower so in return she taped the sink faucet to squirt him in the face. He put honey on the door knob. She superglued his toothbrush, toothpaste, razor and shaving cream to his drawer in the vanity. It only intensified when classes started and they shared most of their classes. Pranks became more vicious and spread to the others bedroom not just the shared space of the bathroom. A month into the school year found most of Bennett’s wardrobe shredded and Jaxon’s meals for a week laced with something. Melatonin was the nicest, laxatives were a given.   
Jaxon shuffled across the quad after Intro to Economics one afternoon at the beginning of October. It had been a hard class that day, he could feel the headache coming on. The sound of giggling came from the steps in front of the cafe. He looked over to find Bennett talking to two other girls. Bennett wore a lopsided smile as they talked. Bennett focused most of her attention on her blonde companion rather than the brunette. The blonde reached out brushing the short bangs out of Benn’s face. Even though the locks were too short to actually fall in her face and her hair was gelled to perfection. She took long enough in the mornings. Especially on Tuesdays and Thursdays, when she had Latin class.   
He looked the girl over trying to remember the girl's name. It took a few minutes but he remembered, Alex, a senior. As they sat talking several people stopped to greet Bennett. She seemed to attract people without trying. She, however, was focused solely on Alex. Jaxon walked to their dorm with a plan, a plan that would be mutually beneficial.  
That evening Bennett entered their dorm only to find Jaxon sitting on her bed a smug smile on his face. “So, not your type? What exactly is your type?”  
“I don’t have time for your crap today, Jaxon. We take the same classes, don’t you have as much homework as I do?” she dropped her bag by the edge of the desk.  
“Of course, that doesn’t mean I am going to do it,” he followed her sitting on the desk. “So how do you feel about redheads?” The blonde rolled her eyes and pulled out her psych book. Trying to block her roommate out. “Nah, I bet you are into blondes. Yeah blonde hair and green eyes.” He hopped down and walked a few paces back and forth behind the girl. “Shorter side, I think. Curls.” Bennett turned to face him. He looked like the cat that ate the canary. “Nice rack? Am I warm?”

“I...”She shot him a glare, “what’s it to you?”  
“I have seen you talk to Alex several times but I wasn’t sure until today, upperclassmen nice.” He stopped as if distracted by a thought. “Is that why you took that class, more upperclassmen?”  
“A basic concept of Latin roots can help you in several fields of study. All the medical fields, for instance. Bonus is that you don’t take it.” She turned back to the book on her desk.   
“But we both know you aren’t going into medical, you are getting a degree in general ed. And only because you have to, to stay in that security school,” he put his hand over the page she was reading.   
Bennett slammed the book closed on his hand, “Latin also tends to make you sound smart. Headed to Latin sounds a whole lot better than headed to burger flipping 101 or whatever you take.”  
“Hey I was gonna help with your Alex problem but if that's how you're gonna be?” Shaking out his hands as he began walking toward the door.  
“I don’t have a problem,” her voice came out soft.   
He took that as his invitation to start the conversation again. “Then why haven’t you asked her out?” When she didn’t respond he continued. “Scared? Don’t know how? She wants you too.” A devious smile crossed his face “I can help you.”  
Bennett looked him up and down, “what’s it gonna cost me?”  
“For some reason it’s starting the conversations that I have problems with, I have been told I come off as abrasive.”  
“Can’t imagine why,” she rolled her eyes.  
He shrugged as if it truly were a mystery. “But everyone seems to like you, so you teach me your charm and I will teach you mine. Be my wingman, I’ll be yours. Truce.” He held out a hand.  
Reluctantly she shook his hand, “Truce.” Within three days Bennett had a date with Alex and she was helping Jaxon get rid of his first one night stand.   
From that point on Jaxon and Bennett were inseparable. They quickly became best friends. Their morals and opinions didn’t always line up but that was understandable.   
His parents were overjoyed when he told them he was bringing a girl home for Thanksgiving break their junior year. He thought it was fun to only refer to her as his best friend, to his parents, or Benn or Bennie. Never by a gender specific pronoun.  
The drive, although short, was exhausting. Jaxon had been teasing her the whole time about this guy at school that could not take a hint. By the time they arrived she had had enough. As soon as he killed the car she tackled him, pushing him out his door. They rolled across the yard laughing and calling each other childish names. Throwing leaves in each other's faces and wrestling, until the girl finally locked in a chokehold making him tap. “Okay, Benn, you win.”  
“Always do,” she held a hand out helping him up. As they dusted off their attention was drawn to the front door of the mansion, they had an audience. There on the front porch steps to the massive mansion stood Jax’s mother, father, and little sister, Emily.  
Bennett made her way through the throng of people to the private tables toward the back of the club. Tucked the corner she found Jax, bleached blonde hair, purple button down shirt, silver tie. Over the top. How do I attract the eccentric types? She questioned herself. First Jax and now Tony.   
“Bennie," he practically jumped over the table. Picking her up in a bear hug. “I am so sorry, Benn. I know Emily. I should have seen the signs. I just really hoped she would be different with you.”   
“It’s not your fault, Jax. I missed all the signs too.” They shared a smile, “so still friends?”  
“Are you kidding,” he smirked, “you can’t get rid of me if you tried.” He turned back to the table, pushing one of the other guys there out of his seat so she could sit.   
Of the four other people sitting at the table one was Jax’s wife, Jordan. She had wrapped Bennett in a warm hug, no words just a hug of understanding. As they hugged Bennett felt an influx of several hormones that were high, she searched her friend for a reason, finally finding it, a second heartbeat.   
Caleb, another of their friends from college, greeted her sitting directly to her left. Jax’s friend and business partner Martin occupied the next seat from him.   
The seat directly across from Bennett was occupied by a woman with dark hair and even darker eyes. She was attractive by anyone’s standards. She had smiled when Jaxon introduced them, a thousand watt smile. Mariam, the head of marketing for the software division of Advanced Idea Mechanics. She was interested to hear that Bennett worked closely with Tony Stark.   
Stories were shared around the table and Jax never let anyone’s glass sit empty. “So here we are, all just turned 21 at the strip club,” Jax continued the story. Bennett buried her face in her hands. “We all decide that Benn needs to experience more of life. She has refused to pay attention to any of the women there. Now as an older brother with her talking to my little sister I respect that. As her best friend I can’t let her leave without having some fun. So me and the other guys shell out a ton of money for Benn to have a private dance. They are back there for a solid 30 minutes so we are all glad that she is finally enjoying something. We watch the hall closely to see when she comes out. Benn and the stripper come out of the room, the stripper wearing Benn’s jacket. She leans in, gives Benn a hug before giving back the jacket and walking the other way. Benn gets back out to us and tells us they talked the entire time. We paid for a private dance and instead Benn spends 30 minutes making sure the woman is comfortable and discussing what this woman wants to do with her life and future.”   
“I will have you know, her name is Holly not “the stripper,” and she is currently studying to be a surgeon.” Bennett smiled as she took another sip of her drink.   
Martin left after a few hours claiming a business meeting in the morning to be the reason, not the busty blonde by the bar that he had been eyeing all night. Caleb went to the dance floor to try his luck with a group of college girls.   
When Mariam left to get a fresh drink Jaxon turned serious. “So Benn, Jordan and I wanted to tell you something,” She knew what was coming. “We’re pregnant.” Their faces were beaming. The sodas and waters Jordan had been drinking all night had solidified what she had felt earlier. She was thrilled for them, even if it did sting a bit.   
If she were different, if Emily were different, if things had just worked out different; they would be hearing this news together and she would be looking forward to being an aunt. Now though she would just be “dad’s crazy friend,” if she even got to be there.   
“We still want you around. We want you to be involved in the baby’s life.” Jax continued almost as if he had read her mind. “You were my wingman and my best friend long before Emily screwed up. I saw you first.”  
She let out a soft laugh, “I will be there as much as I can. I am so happy for you guys.”  
He reached out grabbing Jordan’s hand giving it a gentle squeeze.   
Mariam came back to the table with a drink in hand for herself and a refill for Bennett.   
Jaxon and Jordan went to dance leaving Bennett and Mariam alone.   
“So how many of those do you need for me to convince you to dance?” Mariam’s smile was bewitching.   
Bennett could have easily been ensnared by the sight if not for her recent clash with reality. “I am afraid there isn’t enough alcohol in the world to convince me to dance.” Mariam’s shoulders fell and her smile faltered before she forced a fake in its place. “But I am open to some conversation and maybe a new friend.”   
She met Bennett’s eyes again, “a new friend might be nice.” Her smile diminished in size slightly but it was genuine again. “Especially if this new friend has connections to Tony Stark,” the playfulness in her tone made Bennett laugh.  
“I refuse to be a part in any sort of espionage against my boss or his company.”   
Mariam joined in the laughter, “I guess I will just have to settle for friendly banter then and find another partner in crime against Stark.”   
Friendly banter was the course of the evening. A great deal of the night was spent with the four of them at the table talking and trying to embarrass one another. Periodically it would be just two at the table as the others went to dance.   
At last call Bennett found a taxi for Jaxon, Jordan, and Mariam. She made sure they were all loaded and the drivers had the correct addresses before cranking her bike to head back to Stark tower.   
The last three months had been hell. Today though had been a good day. She hadn’t lost everything with Emily. She wasn’t going through it all alone. She still had Jax, her best friend, and Tony. Everyone needs a Tony.


	3. Chapter 2 Southern Voice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minor Character injury (Bennett Happy)

Having everyone together at Stark tower was great but Bennett had been enjoying the peace. The two days alone at the tower were apparently the calm before the storm that was about to become her life. When Bennett had gone to get Tony for a morning workout the first day they were all back she heard raised voices. Pepper and Tony were at each other's throats again. And the last thing she wanted was to get drawn into the middle of it.  
“Hey Hap, you probably don’t wanna go that way, Mom and Dad are fighting,” he spun on his heel matching pace with the bodyguard.  
“So how was your weekend?” He asked politely. “Meet anyone new at the club?”  
“It was good and yeah.”  
He looked to her for more details. “Oh yeah? Tell me about her.” Happy nudged her shoulder.   
“Her name is Mariam. Beautiful and she knows it. Jet black hair, deep brown eyes, nice tan. Works for Advanced Idea Mechanics.” She shrugged.   
“AIM is still in business?”   
She stopped to look at Happy. “Yeah. It was Atheon that was shut down. AIM is still up and running. Quickly becoming as big a pain as Hammer.”  
“You think she wanted inside information on Tony?”  
“Don’t know. She said no but…”  
“Bennett,” JARVIS’s voice rang through the intercom, “Mr. Stark would like to see you in the lab.”  
“Are he and Pepper done talking?” She asked the A.I. skeptically.   
“Yes, Ma’am,” he replied.  
“Ok, cool, tell him I am on my way. Catch you later, Hap.” She made her way down to Tony and the lab. “Hey Boss, what’s up?”  
“Ah, Benn, perfect,” he ushered the blonde over to the table. “Look,” he pulled over a small case, “at these.”  
He flipped the clasp on the wooden case and opened the lid. Inside lay two crimson leather cuffs with bronze decorative chains and rivets. Between them lay a bronze chain, with a pendant. The pendant was a helmet and spear the feather of the helmet in ruby. All symbols of Athena, the helmet and spear, wisdom and strategy as keys to victory, ruby, immortality. On closer inspection the cuffs were covered in symbols of the gods too. The heads of the rivets had lighting bolts, tridents, swans, a bow and arrows, one even had a cerberus . “Wow, Boss,” the blonde looked them over “when did you become so obsessed with Greek mythology. I mean the stories are cool but…”  
He gave her a playful shove and she laughed. “Try it on,” Tony took the necklace from the middle.  
She reached for the first cuff and wrapped it around her left wrist buttoning it in place, then the same on the right. They were about two inches in width. A perfect mix of leather and bronze. He slipped the necklace over her head. “Not bad, Boss. I’m not much for jewelry but I might can handle these.”  
Tony’s grin was bright enough to light a skyscraper. “Touch the right cuff to your necklace then tap the cuffs together.”  
The blonde did as she was told. Nothing seemed to happen. She didn't feel any different. It was totally plausible Tony had been messing with her and the cuffs and necklace were purely cosmetic.   
Brushing her hair back, she felt the leather cuff slide. She flicked her wrist to make it slide back down but the leather clung to her arm. Looking back down at the cuffs they had changed. They looked more like bracers or gauntlets. They covered her hands and halfway up the fingers, they elongated sliding down her forearm. “Sweet!”  
Tony laughed, “hold onto your hat, kid. J, can you show us a reflection?”  
One wall became a real time feed of the room. Seeing the feed Bennett looked down again. She still saw her jeans and t-shirt but that was far from what she saw reflected on the wall. She was dressed in boots that lace half way up her calf, a pair of pants tucked into the top. A loose, long sleeve shirt and over that was a long vest with a hood and mask. The pendant now appeared to be engraved into the leather of the vest. The most impressive thing was the material it was made from, it was ethereal. It seemed to shimmer. The boots were black leather. The pants, and shirt looked to be more of a canvas type material, very rough, also in black. The vest and bracers were a deep crimson leather. The hood was red made of the same rough material, the mask was black made of a much softer fabric. Or it all appeared that way. She still distinctly felt her jeans and Converse.   
“It’s a special kind of Nanobots I designed. They move individually to flow with your body and project the disguise. They function similar to chainmail and plate armor each piece able to link into the others. Individually they don’t do much for protection but all synced up they should be as effective as kevlar.”   
A dark mist seemed to seep from her. “What is all this for, Boss?”  
“To give you a little extra safety if the worst should ever happen and Ironman needs back up. You will have some protection, a few extra tricks and anonymity. But only in extreme cases,” He said. “Plus it’s just cool. The symbol of Zeus tap it to the opposite palm."  
The gloves seem to tingle, looking up she saw the reason as the gloves pulsed with blue arcs of electricity. She smirked. "Ironman better need help at least once."  
Tony matched her smirk, "for emergencies only."   
She tapped the cuffs together then the symbol on her chest. The reflection showed that she was in her jeans and tee once again. "Thanks, boss." They shared a smile as she wrapped him in a hug.  
"Happy birthday, Benn, sorry it's a bit late" he returned the hug, pressing a quick kiss to her hair. "Oh," he perked up, " I almost forgot." He went to a work table picking up what looked like a ring box. "Stand still." He pulled something from the box balancing it on the tip of his finger. He pressed the finger behind her left ear.   
"Ow", she muttered as it seemed to bite into the side of her skull. The pain only lasted a second. She looked up at Tony with a question on her lips.  
"This is a new prototype I’ve been working on. It's a neurotransmitter. It connects directly to your brain with your own version of JARVIS. Your own personal A.I." He tapped a few buttons on a tablet and Bennett could hear a faint buzzing. "I will let you know when I have upgrades for the cuffs. Need the power of all the gods. There's a training program built into the A.I. shows you how to use it, so when you’re ready say 'Hey BOBbi.'" He walked out of the workshop.   
Bennett followed Tony's instructions. "Hey BOBbi."  
"Initializing program,"a voice whispered in her ear, followed by the sounds of an old computer start screen. "Welcome, Kid. Beginning neuro-link." She heard a high pitched ring and more "dial up" noises. "Neuro-link established. From this point on you will be able to activate all B.O.B. programs by thought."   
What?  
"I am here to assist Phylax in whatever you require," the voice had a slight echo as it bounced around Bennett's head.   
Phylax?  
"Phylax is a term in ancient Greek that translates: watcher, sentinel, keeper, protector, guardian. Phylax is also the name of a statue at Benjamin and Marshall college located in Lancaster, PA. "  
I am sure it's supposed to be a compliment from Tony. Goes with the Greek theme but can we just stick with Bennett for now maybe come back to Phylax?  
"Very well, Kid."   
She rolled her eyes. So how does this work?  
"I take in everything you take in through your senses to analyze your world. I can help you with everything from battle strategy to how to find the closest coffee shop. Run constant analysis of your health and a built in GPS. Incase of emergencies."  
Ok. So you just butt in or do I have to activate you.  
"Think my name anytime you need me."  
BOBbi is an odd pick for Tony. Too tame. He always uses acronyms. So...  
"It stands for Bennett's Online Babysitter."  
"Tony," Bennett yelled, running after the man. "Babysitter? Really?"

Happy held up the boxing mitts for Tony. His jab was fast and he had a decent hook, but he was treating the pads as just that. Nothing more than a target. “Come on, Boss! Treat it like a real fight.” Bennett called from the side of the ring.  
He continued to dance around, throwing punches even a blind man could see coming. “Alright, alright, stop. Happy you’re out.” the girl grabbed a pair of fingerless gloves and strapped them in place climbing into the ring. “Let’s go, Boss.” She pulled up her guard. “I want you to try that sweep we were working on.”  
She immediately attacked. Jab, uppercut, overhand. Wheel kick, backfist, back hand ridge. Round house, spin sidekick. Tony stumbled back a few steps catching the sidekick on his ribs.  
“Seriously, Kid?” He stepped up his game. Jab, jab, hook. She blocked them with ease. He followed up with a skip side kick, then a back knuckle. The skip side missed but she took the back knuckle to be able to get inside his guard.   
Once inside she drove two hooks and an uppercut into his gut before bouncing out the other side.   
Tony stood guard raised. They squared up again as Pepper entered the room calling “Tony, the notary’s here.” Another woman walked in behind her, a redhead Bennett didn't recognize. The woman was gorgeous. She took a second glance at the woman and that's when it happened. Smack! Her head hit the canvas hard.   
“Yes,” Tony pumped his fist in the air, “I got the sweep.”  
Rubbing the back of her head she sat up. A smirk played at the corner of the stranger's lips. Bennett fought the rush of blood that threatened to flood her cheeks with a blush. Tony was going to pay for that.   
He held his hand out for the girl to take and she accepted it. He pulled her up and stepped close whispering as he turned them both to face the women, “nice choice, kid.” He looked the redhead over and sent Bennet a wink as they climbed from the ring.  
“Good afternoon, Ms. Potts,” Bennett smiled at the older woman.   
“How is your protege coming along?” she asked.  
“Making progress. A few more weeks and he will just about be ready to take on that sweet little lady that feeds the strays in the park. Hi,” she addressed the newcomer, “I don’t believe I’ve had the pleasure, Bennett Lancaster.” she held out a hand to the redhead. She could tell her nerves had kicked in as habits she thought she had long buried began to reappear. Tony smirked hearing the accent resurface. Some of her vowels began to draw out, like the first “a” in "Lancaster." Tony hadn't heard her Southern drawl since she first started working for him.   
The newcomer took her hand giving a light shake, “Natalie Rushman.”  
“It’s nice to meet ya, Ms. Rushman,” She inwardly cringed. Reverting to old habits makes sense, nerves have you scrambling for comfort and familiarity. She hated this though. She knew she sounded more uneducated by the second. Her embarrassment peaked when she realized that she was still shaking Natalie’s hand. Far longer than could be considered normal. She fought down a blush again. Some higher power must have taken sympathy on the blonde as her phone rang on the other side of the room. “If y'all will excuse me for a minute. ” her gaze left Natalie's to look at Tony who was grinning from ear to ear. “I’ll be right back, Boss.” He nodded and she took her leave.  
The call was from her dad. She answered and promised to call back when she had time to talk. Happy stood leaning against one of the corners of the ring. Bennett hopped up sitting on the ring beside him knowing this would be a long ordeal. “Kid, you got a bit of drool,” he teased looking between her and Natalie. She chose to ignore his jab but involuntarily wiped her lips with the back of her hand.   
Tony didn't even have to think about whether he was appointing Pepper as CEO. He had decided that. Knowing Tony he would make this a long and tedious process regardless.   
At Tony's request Natalie made her way into the boxing ring. "Bennett, want to give her a lesson?" He shot her a mischievous smile and went to talk to Pepper. Happy practically jumped into the ring volunteering before she could even move. " I got it boss." He climbed in the ring tightening his gloves.   
Bennett listened to Tony and Pepper's conversation to a point but focused most of her attention on Happy's lesson. Leaning both arms on the bottom rope she listened as Happy questioned the woman. "Have you ever boxed before?"   
She nodded, "a bit." Her voice was low and Bennett felt a chill run up her spine. She could easily become addicted to it.   
"Like Tae Bo, booty boot camp, something like that?" Happy had apparently said the wrong thing. Her eyes flashed with irritation and something akin to murder.   
"Natalie, how do you spell your name?" Tony called from his seat.   
"R-u-s-h-m-a-n," she appeared to listen as Happy explained a few basic moves. The boredom in her eyes was evident.  
On the other side of the room Tony searched her resume and accomplishments. Bennett listened as Tony read his findings out loud. Bennett glanced up when Tony began listing the languages she knew, Latin, really? And then again when he mentioned modeling.Tony hit a button so the pictures would project up off the screen. She caught a glimpse of one picture and immediately averted her gaze, her face and neck heating with no chance of getting it back under control. It wasn’t a completely inappropriate picture but was unprofessional and an invasion of her privacy.  
Bennett moved to the opposite side of the ring so Tony and the screens were at her back. Natalie watched as she settled into the new spot.   
“Rule number one: never take your eyes off your opponent,” Happy took a swing at her. It was slow and weak. She caught it with ease, her eyes never leaving Bennett’s. Next thing Happy knew was an expert level take down. A chokehold and an arm bar that would leave his arm sore for a day or two. Pepper and Tony jumped from their seats shocked. Tony smirked looking from the woman to Happy and back. Pepper was slightly panicked as Happy pulled himself up.   
“I’m fine,” he stood rubbing his shoulder. Bennett bit back a laugh. He limped to the edge of the ring as Natalie slid gracefully through the ropes. She slipped her shoes back on and went to get Tony to finalize the paperwork. "I slipped," Happy said as he sat on the side of the ring beside Bennett.   
"She kicked your butt," the girl smirked. "TKO. Come on." She grabbed her mouthpiece, bouncing into the ring. "Give you a chance to redeem yourself."  
"Right," he huffed climbing back in the ring, "we have fought before, remember, Kid."  
"I’ll take it easy on, ya. Give you a chance to pick up the pieces of your broken pride,” she replied smugly.   
"You are going down, Kid" he pulled the straps of his gloves tighter and pulled up his guard.   
She caught sight of Natalie one last time over Happy's shoulder. The redhead smiled at the blonde and Bennett was gone.   
“I want one,” Tony quipped as Bennett kept her eyes on the door Ms. Rushman had just left through.   
“No,” was Pepper’s immediate reply.   
“Can I have one?” the words fell out of her mouth unchecked. Pepper’s scoff snapped her back to reality. Pepper rolled her eyes as she headed for the door.   
"She might let you have one," Tony eyed her, "what was up with the accent slip." He laughed and Bennett sent him a glare. "I hope she stays around. I would like to hear you say ‘ain't’ maybe ‘howdy’."  
She faced Happy again, pulling her guard up. Maybe if she talked to Pepper she would keep Natalie around somewhere.   
That night Bennett wandered up out to the balcony to return the earlier phone call. She found her dad’s contact in her phone and pressed the button to dial. The other end rang once… twice before it was picked up. “How’s my favorite little hero,” her dad’s voice rang through the phone.  
“Hey dad,” a soft smile played across her features at the childhood nickname. “I am doing pretty good. All things considered.” The normal conversation passed catching up on each other’s lives and plans for the next few weeks, reminiscing over the past.  
Bennett laughed with her father at a story from when he was dating her mother. She sighed heavily. “Dad, I thought I knew what I was doing, but I was so far off the mark. Maybe love like what you and mom had is just a fairy tale.” Bennett shook her head looking to the heavens for guidance. “I gave her everything. For two years, I worked and scraped to make her happy and I wasn’t enough. I gave all I had to our relationship and my best wasn’t enough.”  
“Benn, it wasn’t you. Relationships don’t work one sided. Both of you have to want it or it won’t work. You will fall in love again.”   
“I don’t think so, dad.” Bennett’s voice was soft.   
“When you were with Emily…” he started but stopped himself. “When Nora’s mother died I thought my life was done. It would be just me and this tiny little girl that I had know idea what to do with.” His smile came through the line, “then out of nowhere your mom showed up. I was going about my day at work, looked up, didn’t quite believe my eyes so I looked again. I hadn’t been the slightest bit interested in anyone but the moment I saw her I was hooked. It took a while to convince her but…well you know the end of the story.” Bennett didn’t have a response. “One day someone will come along, and she will be just what you need. Your mom had this one smile that was reserved just for me. After I saw it the first time I worked everyday to deserve another of those smiles. You will find her just give her a little bit of time.”  
“Benn, come on, James Bond marathon,” Tony yelled from inside.  
“Sorry dad, I gotta go,” Bennett apologized.  
He chuckled, “I heard, go have fun kiddo. Make sure you watch the Connery ones.”  
“Yes sir, Love you, dad,” Bennett smiled.  
“Love you too. Bye.”  
The faint click was heard and Bennett headed inside. “Boss, dad says we have to start with ‘From Russia With Love.’”


	4. Ch. 3 Here's a Quarter

CH. 3 Here's a Quarter (call someone who cares)

It turned out Bennett didn’t have to talk to Pepper at all. Tony being Tony just did what he wanted, regardless of the consequences.   
The first week after Tony hired Natalie was tense. Pepper was ticked. Bennett became the mediator between them. She spent that week passing messages on to Pepper and delivering her replies to Tony. She along with everyone else was walking on eggshells. Tony needed to make things better fast.   
Bennett was scrambling to catch up on the paperwork she hadn’t gotten done because she had become Tony’s personal delivery service. 

“Lancaster,” she looked up to the door of the security office, it was Natalie. “there is someone here for you.” 

“Okay, send ‘em in.” Natalie stepped back out of the office, returning a few seconds later. Bennett focused on keeping her voice in check. No “Texas twang”. “Ms. Rushman, Tony said we need to start self-defense training. So what time would you be free?” She felt a bit of pride; no odd contractions, no drawn out vowels. 

Stark’s assistant checked the schedule on her tablet, ”We are about to start the last meeting of the day and then Mr. Stark doesn’t have anything else scheduled until a business dinner late this evening. So I could meet you in the gym in an hour?”

“Yes, ma'am. I should be done here, so I’ll see ya then.” Crap. She mentally slapped herself. She had been ok until “ma’am”. It was impossible to keep the south from slipping on that word, especially since Ms. Rushman showed up. 

Natalie walked out of the security office and back to her own desk.  
Only then did Bennett notice who her visitor was. “Emily? I didn’t know you were coming by today. All your stuff is at the secretary’s desk.”

She looked at the blonde then looked back to the hallway, where Natalie had gone. “What the hell?”

“What?” she looked at her ex in confusion. 

“Who is she, Bennie?” Emily shot her a glare. 

“Ms. Rushman?” She shrugged, “she is Mr. Stark’s new assistant.” 

Emily rolled her eyes. “Nevermind. Look, Madison and I talked and we really want to try this. All three of us together,” she sat on the corner of the desk. 

Bennett pulled the report she had been working on out from under the other woman’s hand. “All three of us. Making our relationship what? Polygamous? An open relationship?” She refocused on the report. “Now, I need to finish this, so get your stuff and leave.”

“Bennie, I know we should have approached you a different way about this. If you just give us a chance, one week,” she placed a finger under her chin forcing her to meet her eyes, “we will make it worth your time.”

Bennett pushed her hand away. “That is never going to happen. Now please get your stuff and go.”

She hopped off the desk and circled behind the bodyguard draping her arms over her shoulders “Bennie bear, please, I really miss you.” 

When she placed the first kiss on her neck Bennett jumped up from her seat, knocking Emily off balance. Reflexively Bennett reached out a hand to steady her. “That is something you probably should have thought about before,” She tried to push her way to the door but the other woman blocked her path.

“Bennie if you just meet her, give Madison a chance, give me another chance,'' she begged. 

“No.” she shook her head. “Emily, you made your choice. You slept with someone else for 18 out of the 24 months we were together.”

“21.” She at least had the decency to look ashamed.

“21 months,” Bennett scoffed. “Tell me one thing,...why?”

“I just... It was all sweet at first, the no sex until we are sure thing was sweet but. One month led to two and then three, and in the third I met Madison and it just happened.”

“That doesn’t just happen, especially not for 21 months,” Bennett knew this was a no win situation, she would see herself as the victim no matter what. 

“I was lonely ok. You got this job with Stark and you disappeared. I didn’t matter anymore. You left during dates, or called to cancel half the time, because Mr. Stark needed you to tie his shoes or something. You weren’t the person I met anymore. You were married to this job and I didn’t even get enough of your time to be considered your mistress.”

“I had Tony rearrange as much as I could when we had plans, but galas, premieres, and charity events are a bit hard to reschedule and I always told you about them beforehand. You tried to make plans anyway.” She could feel her anger building and tried to help her body pump enough serotonin to counteract the rush of epinephrine racing to her brain. 

“You missed our anniversary. Our first. You missed it, all to help Tony Stark and his evil empire,” she spat fake sobs building in her throat. 

“I was half an hour late and I called to tell you that. Tony blew something up in the lab. It took a while to clean it up and I figured coming to dinner covered in ash and slime was a bad idea. It was an accident,” she tried to explain as calmly as she could. "Besides I think after the whole "I've been sleeping with someone else" bomb you dropped a few months ago you have no room to talk."

“All those late nights you HAD to work. Stark probably had any number of girls up here for you. So don’t act like I am the only unfaithful one in this relationship,” here come the waterworks.

“And “training” with Stark’s assistant. I wonder what that could be code for,” she started in on Natalie. “You only keep women like her around for one thing. I can guarantee she got this job only one way. She slept her way to the top. She’s a whore. She is no different than that Potts woman, Stark making her CEO is a joke.”

Bennett finally snapped. “Shut up,” her voice was deadly quiet. “You don’t know the first thing about Ms. Rushman. She knows how to do her job and does it well. She has already helped Mr. Stark with several big deals, and she has only been here a week. She works hard. That is how she got her job.”

“See you're sleeping with her,” she crossed her arms over her chest, “why else would you be defending her.”

“She is a good person. So is Tony. Pepper is more accomplished than you could ever dream of being. Now Ms. Hennings, as you are aware I am normally a very patient person, but you have about pushed mine to its limit. I swear if you try to blame our failed relationship on Tony, Pepper, Happy, Ms. Rushman or anyone other than me and you I will have you forcibly removed from the premises. They are employees here, it is my job to protect them from anyone I deem a threat. I also consider them my friends, so I WANT to protect them.” 

Her jaw dropped. "You want to know why I kept Madison around? She is so much better than you, in every sense. All your nobility about waiting. In the long run it puts you way behind the curve."

Hey BOBbie connect me to the security team. “Right away, Kid,”  
The blonde reached the “com” in her ear, “Mars, Davis, I need you in the security office.”   
Moments later two burly men stepped through the door. “Please escort Ms. Hennings out of the building. She is no longer allowed on any Stark properties. And Emily leave my friends alone.”  
The two men led her out of the office before she even had a chance to reply. Bennett collapsed in her chair. She thought back through the conversation with Emily and their relationship. Something about the timeline didn’t add up. Her job with Tony didn’t push her into Madison’s arms. She said three months. When Bennett got this job they had been dating six months. So it wasn’t Tony. She could only think of one reason for Emily to look somewhere else. She had failed. Bennett was the problem. She pushed Emily to Madison. Maybe she was just too old fashioned in her thinking. This was probably not the first relationship she killed because she didn’t kiss on the first date and sex was not on the table until the relationship had time to be stable and well established. Her dad taught her and her brothers and sister that a relationship had to be built on more than just the physical stuff. If you couldn’t see the relationship as long term then it didn’t need to go past the first date. The reason to date is to find the right person, not just to fill time. Maybe her thinking was too backwards. 

A knock at the door snapped her out of her thoughts, “hey, you ok?”

“I’m fine, Ms. Rushman, just an uncomfortable conversation,” Bennett tried to plaster a smile on her face but it failed to reach her eyes. 

“Mr. Stark’s last appointment just canceled so if you want to go head down to the gym now, I’m free.” She smiled. 

Bennett was mesmerised by the sight. She had never seen Natalie smile before, not like this. Shy smiles and seductive ones, flirtatious smiles even deadly ones. A week working with the woman had shown an array of smirks and grins, scowls and glares. The redhead knew how to present herself to get what she wanted in a situation. This could be just another presentation, a manipulation to get her way. For some reason Bennett didn’t think this was. A real smile. People talk about a smile reaching someone’s eyes. Her’s was the opposite: her’s seemed to hide in her eyes long before reaching her lips. “Of course, Ms. Rushman.” Bennett left the reports on the desk. She could always finish them later.   
Bennett grabbed the gym bag from the back corner of the office and began the walk to the gym with Natalie. “How long have you trained?” She asked the redhead as they reached the elevator.

“Just a couple of self defense courses here and there,” Natalie answered. 

“Right,” she laughed, “ I saw you take down Happy,” the elevator dinged open and both women stepped inside. “That was beyond impressive. And that wasn’t learned in a self-defense course.”

“My parents had me training my entire childhood,” Natalie admitted, “never learned for fun. I was always taught that the world was cruel and you had to be prepared or people will take advantage of you,” she shrugged.

“I don’t really think there is much I can teach you,” Benn said honestly. “I tried to tell Tony. He dund’t listen.” She cringed. “He doesn’t listen. That’s one of Tony’s things… not... listening.”

Natalie’s bright green eyes sparkled at the accent slip. ”Maybe we can go a couple of rounds in the ring. It has been a while since I sparred.”  
Bennett, still recovering from her embarrassment, took in the other woman’s attire for the first time. A black pencil skirt and white blouse with the top two buttons tastefully undone, black heels. “Sweats or shorts? I have a couple extra pairs stored in Tony’s gym. We can train there today.”

Making it to Tony's private gym Bennett found a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. Pointing the other woman in the direction of the locker room. Bennett had spent most of her day in the company gym with some security team member or another so she was already dressed to fight. She slid her gloves from her bag and strapped them in place, waiting. 

Normally Bennett would just physically stretch out, not depend on her abilities to loosen the muscles. This was not a normal fight. So she focused on forcing the muscles to relax and stretch further than normal. She wanted to impress the redhead, and she already knew Natalie was not going to be an easy fight. Bennett focused on her body loosening each muscle allowing it to stretch to the fullest extent. Proper distribution of blood and oxygen to the body, a steady, controlled supply of dopamine and adrenaline to focus and fuel the fight. But not overwhelm the fight. Bennett was lost in thought and jumped when the locker room door shut. 

Natalie was tying the drawstring on the sweat pants Bennett had lent her. “Thank you again,” she smiled at the blonde, “I promise I will bring my own stuff tomorrow.”

“It’s no big deal,” Bennett shrugged it off. “What kind of gloves do you prefer?” On the side of the ring she had laid out a pair of vinyl sparring gloves, a pair of boxing gloves, and a pair of fingerless gloves. Natalie surveyed the collection before looking back up, clearly having no idea which to choose. Bennett grabbed the vinyl ones sticking them back in the locker against the wall. “Student gloves don’t apply here. Punch heavy or grappling?” She pointed from the boxing mitts to the fingerless gloves. 

Natalie reached for the black fingerless pair, “these are what I need if I plan on pinning you to the mat?”

“If that is your strategy then yeah. You want those,” Bennett grabbed the mitts throwing them in the locker as well. Taking a second to calm her erratic pulse and pull the blush from her cheeks. “Kicks?” She turned to find Natalie already in the ring. She jumped up throwing a spin kick that would have knocked out a full grown man, landing gracefully without a sound, continuing a three kick combo, wheel, hook, side, without ever setting her foot down, before doing the same on the other side. Bennett winced at the anticipated headache. “Kicks, yes.” She grabbed two pairs of shin pads with instep guards and a new mouthpiece for the other woman. Gear on they squared up, this was the first fight the bodyguard had been excited for in a long time. 

An hour later they both lay on the mat completely spent, breathing heavily. “So how do I rank?” Natalie asked, turning her head to look at the blonde. 

“Well,” Bennett tried to force more air back into her lungs and slow her heart rate. “Some of those combinations I have never even imagined before and your flexibility is beyond impressive. Good choke and you know pressure points. Could kill everyone of Tony’s security guys.” She looked over to meet Natalie’s smile. “You sure you’re not like a ninja or something on the weekends.” Natalie chuckled and Bennett pushed herself off the floor before offering Natalie a hand up. “Any tips for me?”

“Watch out for those sweeps,” was the redhead’s immediate response. She climbed through the ropes and headed for the locker room. Bennett watched her for a few steps before following.

“I was thinking about heading over to the park since we have a couple of hours until the business dinner tonight. If you wanna tag along.” Bennett suggested as they returned to the locker room. 

“I would love to but I have some housekeeping I have been putting off all week, and now I have to shower before dinner too,” Natalie grinned. 

“Well if you would have just tapped out when I had you pinned like a sensible person you wouldn’t have gotten near as sweaty,” Bennet replied.

“Obviously you didn’t have me pinned or else I wouldn’t have been able to get out of it,” was her response. 

Bennett turned meeting Natalie’s gaze, a smart remark ready but her words died on her lips when she caught sight of the other woman. She stood there in nothing but Bennett’s sweats and a bra. The blonde stumbled for a coherent thought. She spun back around knowing her face was the same shade of red as Natalie’s bra. Bennett ran a hand through her short hair as she left the room as fast as she could without running.

Natalie’s smirk grew seeing the girl blush. She had to admit Bennett had a certain charm. It would be fun to see how many times she could make her blush. 

A/n: I apologize for missing the normal update yesterday. I started a new therapy for my PTSD this weekend and was exhausted. I don't know if anyone is enjoying this story or even reading it. I know I need to finish this story for myself if no one else. It will take a while. I know the beginning is a bit slow but it will pick up. If you are reading this Thank you for hanging with me through this story.


	5. Ch.4 Who you'd be today

Bennett stood in the hotel lobby, the sun was beginning to set outside. She surveyed the area. Entrances/exits, windows, emergency exits, stairs, elevators, security personnel, housekeepers, receptionist, valet, doormen, security cameras, safes, keypad entry doors. This place would take a while to get locked down. With Happy helping though they would get it done. “Alright, kid,” and speak of the devil, “do you wanna room with Tony for security purposes,” he gave his head a few subtle nods, “or sleep in the room across the hall,” a few subtle shakes. He held up the room keys in turn.   
“What are Tony’s late night plans for the next few days?” She asked apprehensively.   
“Happy and I have big plans. Gonna make friendship bracelets, a spa day, manicures, I am thinking movies and facials tonight,” Tony walked up to their conversation.  
The girl reached out and plucked the card for the second room with a smirk. “My decision has been made for me.”  
“Lancaster?” A man approached, the head of security for the hotel according to his uniform. He held a hand out to Happy. Happy looked from the man then to the blonde and back.   
“That would be me. Nice to meet you Mr?” she shook his hand.  
“Alvarez,” he had the same shocked look they had all seen many times before.  
“Mr. Alvarez, Bennett Lancaster. I would like to talk to you about the security layout in the hotel,” she followed the man calling over her shoulder, “Hap, take my bag up for me. 2306. You and Tony are in the other room. Meet you in half an hour, yeah?”  
The hotel’s security only needed to be buffed up in a few areas. Camera coverage was good, minimal blind spots. Setting motion sensors on their hallway would make up for those. Extra cameras in the fire escape stairwells. Mr. Alvarez was more than happy to help wherever needed and assured his staff would be as well.  
She made it up to the rooms to settle in about 9. Late room service, a shower and sleep. The next few days were more than likely going to be a nightmare.  
She slid the room key into the slot before opening the door. Shutting it quietly behind her she heard the sound of a hair dryer. “Tony? Hap?” It was probably just Tony or Happy borrowing the shower, it wouldn’t be the first time. They didn’t do well having to share space. She shut the door, deciding to just wait it out. After grabbing the shorts and tank top she packed for pajamas she surveyed. A giant king sized bed, two night stands, a dresser, flat screen tv, it looked just like any other hotel room. A rich, fancy hotel but a hotel. She walked toward the window on the far side of the room. A couch was pushed up against the wall.   
The bathroom door opened and she spun. There in pajama pants and a t-shirt, long red hair hanging straight down her back, was Natalie. “Ms. Rushman? Tony never told me you were joining us.”   
"I was a last minute addition. Mr Stark is a bit impulsive if you haven't noticed." She gave a teasing smile. "Have you eaten? I thought about seeing if I could find a pizza."  
"Sounds like a good plan to me. Tony has been on a health kick, low carbs and weird teas. I could use junk food.” Bennett shifted from foot to foot.  
"Great!" She hopped onto the bed and grabbed the phone calling the front desk.   
Bennett headed into the bathroom to take a quick shower, stopping by her bag on the way to trade the tank top for a t-shirt. The shower gave her time to think and formulate a plan. Heading back into the room she grabbed one of the pillows from the bed, and the throw blanket from the back of the couch and tried to make herself comfortable. The room was freezing. The blanket was too small to cover her body unless she curled up and even at that it was thin. The couch was only slightly more comfortable than the floor. She adjusted the pillow again. Nope, the floor was probably more comfortable.  
“What are you doing?,” Natalie hung up the phone. Long phone call for pizza?  
“Finding the comfy spot on the couch to sleep,” the bodyguard answered.   
“The bed is huge beyond enough room for both of us,” she pulled back the covers to emphasize the size.  
“I’m good. The couch is perfectly fine.” The couch was one of those that is made for looks not comfort.   
“I am calling bull on that,” she raised one eyebrow looking the couch over sceptically.  
“I’m good,” she insisted, pulling the blanket up, only for it to slide off her feet at the other end.   
“You will kill your back if you sleep over there.” She went for a logical approach. When that failed she decided to go with a little truth. “The day your uh...friend came to see you. I was the one that brought her to your office. I wasn’t trying to eavesdrop, but her voice carries. So I kinda figured some things out.”  
“So you understand why I am sleeping on the couch.” Bennett pointed out the obvious.   
“You were raised with too much southern respect, or whatever you call it. I can trust you” she smiled, “besides I heard something else that day.” Bennett closed her eyes, Emily had not been kind.   
“What she said about me, it isn’t the first time those things have been said. But it is the first time someone has stood up for me. So...I trust you,” she looked up meeting the other woman’s eyes. Bennett got lost in the green of her irises. “We can even put pillows down the middle of the bed if it makes you more comfortable.”  
“You are really okay with this?” She slowly made her way to the bed.  
“Since I started working for Tony, I have seen you open the door for people at least a hundred times, you know the names of everyone down to the mail guy and call everyone Mr. or Ms., every request you have made of me has been delivered with a ‘please’ and received with a ‘thank you’. You were raised to show respect. I can trust you.” She shot a dazzling smile in the blonde’s direction as she scooted to the far side of the bed. “Besides it gives us a chance to talk. I think we both could use a friend.”  
She threw the pillow back on the bed then tentatively sat on the edge of the bed opposite Natalie. She reached for the remote, turning to the movie channels “So movie preferences?”  
“Action is good or horror. I love a good thriller,” her eyes lit with something akin to mischief but...more deadly?   
She hid the shiver, flipping to the right channels and reading the titles. “Ok we can do any of these. Except “IT”. I don’t do clowns. They have scared me since I was a kid.”  
“Like run screaming scared or hide under the bed scared,” she teased.  
“You never hide under the bed, that’s where all the monsters live,” Bennett shrugged like the suggestion was ridiculous. “What are you scared of?”  
There was a knock on the door before she could respond. Natalie went to answer but was stopped as Bennett grabbed her wrist. She pulled the pistol Tony insisted she carry. She checked through the peephole and saw it was the pizza. A quick glance at her phone showed all sensors were clear so she opened the door. She gave the man the money and a generous tip before closing the door and carrying it back to the bed. Natalie headed to the minifridge. “Soda or beer?”  
“I never drink when I am out with Tony. Have a hard enough time keeping him out of trouble when I am sober,” she gave an over exaggerated sigh.   
“Alright soda it is,” Natalie took out two of the expensive bottles tossing one to Bennett. It would be on Stark's bill so why not.   
“When I open these boxes I am not going to find anything really weird on them like anchovies or anything am I, Ms. Rushman” she gave the first pizza box a tentative sniff.  
“No, one should be canadian bacon and pineapple the other a supreme, nothing too wild.” She opened the second box that turned out to be the pineapple one. “Can I ask a favor?”  
They each took a slice from one box or the other, settling back to watch the movie. “You can ask,” Bennett replied. Natalie had found some horrifying movie about a serial killer. Bennett watched it without flinching but she couldn’t wait for it to end.   
She turned to look at the blonde. “Can you just call me Nat from now on? I am not a big fan of Ms. Rushman.”   
“Of course,” her eyes were a warm, golden brown. “One condition. From now it’s Benn, in extreme cases Bennett. But no more Lancaster.”  
“So ‘Kid’ is off the table too,” she smirked.   
“If you must, fine, but it’s not my favorite.” One thing was for sure a couple dozen times of Natalie calling her “kid” and any crush she might be developing would die.   
“No, ‘kid’ I promise, except when I really need to get your attention.” Bennett started to protest but the words died on her lips when she saw her smile. So maybe there was a crush already there.   
As the murder movie marathon continued Natalie began to ask questions. Questions about Tony and what it was like working for him. If everything they said about the Ironman was true. Questions about the tower and some of the people she had met there.   
The blonde countered with questions about her past. Where she grew up? Russia. Explains the room temperature. About her family? Abusive parents, several sisters. School? Private. She shared a few stories about playing with her sisters in the snow and the ballet school they all attended.  
She then ventured into Bennett’s past. Born and raised in Texas. Public school. Four siblings, Elanora Elayne 33, Leopold Arthur 27, Fitzwilliam Charles her twin, and Zacharias Liam 18. She told a few stories from her own childhood.  
“Interesting name choices,” Natalie smiled, “so what's yours?”  
“That, my dear, is something not even Tony knows,” she drained the last of the soda.   
“Please I won’t tell a soul, I swear,” she pleaded.   
The look on Natalie’s face, Bennett would tell her just about anything. “Give me yours first.”  
Her smile was wide enough to show teeth. “Natalie Aleece Rushman.”  
Her name was pretty and it flowed off the tongue easily. “Natalie Aleece. I should have asked for something more embarrassing.”  
“You promised so” she looked at the woman expectantly.   
“Fine. You have to understand that my mother had a bit of an obsession when my brother and I were born. So he was named Fitzwilliam Charles Lancaster and I got landed with,” she took a deep breath, “Bennett Darcy Lancaster.”  
The corners of Natalie’s mouth twitched as she held back a laugh. “So Pride and Prejudice, that was the obsession.”  
“All of Jane Austen really but yeah  
Mom's original choice was Elizabeth Jane. Dad said if my brother and I were going to be named after literary characters, it should be painfully obvious.” Bennett pushed the bangs out of her face again. It was drying and she knew the natural curls were making the short locks stick up at unnatural angles. Natalie hadn’t commented yet so maybe it wasn’t too bad.  
They talked late into the night. Mainly just small talk but you can learn a lot about someone from small talk. What Bennett learned was that there was something off about Nat, something didn’t quite add up. 

The sparse tree line over the creek offered little shade from the summer sun. The grass under the children's feet crunched, dry from lack of rain and the hot August days. Sweat dripped in the twins eyes as they raced across the field. They stopped when they heard Leo's kite crash to the ground yet again. 

"Let me try, Leo," Fitz ran toward the darker haired boy. Bennett following her brother. 

"No," Leo said, jerking it out of the reach of the two six year olds before running deep into the field. The two gave chase laughing at the game.   
Leo dashed between two trees, the kite hanging on a limb. Fitz raced after his older brother dodging through the trees. Bennett stopped at the kite. She could hear their older sister calling them. It took a few moments but she managed to free the kite from the tree. She hid it in the bushes to throw Elanora off their scent for a little longer. Hiding from her was always fun. She scrambled after the two boys.   
The three young Lancasters chased each other up the incline towards the deepest part of the creek. Being spring fed the water was always flowing deep, crisp, and cool.   
As Bennett crested the top of the hill catching up to her brothers Fitz slipped falling into the creek. Bennett scrambled trying to reach her twin, tripping a few times herself. Reaching the bank she could see Fitz fighting to sit up, fighting to push his way out of the water. His head was slammed back under the surface hard, red began to mix with the water.  
Bennett raced to Fitz. She climbed into the water to get a better hold on her brother. She reached for his shoulders but found her hands wrapping around his throat. Bennett tried to move her hands again to his shoulder but they just squeezed tighter around his throat.   
Fitz wrapped his hands around his sister’s wrists fighting her grip. Trying to break her loose. As he broke the surface of the water again. Bennett slammed him under.   
Bennett’s hands slowly constricted his airway only letting up long enough to allow him to breathe in a lungful of water before squeezing again.   
Tears pooled in the small girl’s eyes and streamed down her cheeks as she tried to pull away from her twin. Tried to release her hold but something forced her hand to stay even as she saw the life drain from his body. Face paling and lips tinting blue. His eyes wide, the brown that had matched her own now growing lifeless. Bennett felt her lungs burning at each mouthful of water pushed in and the raw burn from the constriction from her own hands. She felt her body temperature drop with his and her heart slow. She began losing touch with the world around her as his mind became muddled from lack of oxygen. When Fitz’s heart gave its last beat, Bennett’s hands were freed.   
Immediately she tried to pull him from the water but she lacked the strength.   
A voice called from behind her, “Benn, what did you do?” Elenora and Leo stood on the crest of the hill looking down at her. 

Panic set in. Her small hands covered in her brother’s blood. Her fault. His body floating in the swollen creek. Her fault. His lifeless eyes staring up at her. Accusing her. It was justified, she had done it. Fitz was dead because of her. Her fault. 

Bennett ran from the creek and through the field back toward their home. 

Her fault.

If she could get to Momma she could fix it. Momma could fix anything. Even this. The house though wasn’t where it should have been. She was lost.  
Her fault. 

Fitz was dying. Fitz was dead. 

Her fault. 

She ran and ran. Searching for home, calling for her mother. Getting no closer to finding either. The coldness she had felt from Fitz began to seep in again. 

Her fault. 

“Bennett,” a faint voice called. 

Her heart began to slow, and breathing became shallow. She fell to her knees, tears mixing with the blood on her hands as she cried for relief of some sort.

“Bennett.”

Darkness crept in crowding her vision. She deserved this.

“Bennett”

She deserved death for what she had done. What she was capable of. Bennett lay in the field curling her small body as tight into itself as she could, surrendering to the end. Breath growing slower, pulse getting weaker, vision growing darker and body temperature dropping by the minute. It was going to be a slow death. 

“Benn.” 

She closed her eyes accepting fate even as the tears continued to fall. Death was scary. She lay waiting for the end but it didn’t come. 

Instead of getting colder the next minute she felt an added warmth. The minute after that her vision began to soften if not lighten. She began to slip into a peaceful sleep. Breathing returning to a natural pace, listening to a soft heartbeat that was not her own but promised safety.


	6. Ch. 5 Scare me

Bennett woke to the familiar feeling of pins and needles, right hand completely asleep. She tried to soothe the nerves so she could sleep a little longer but something else was off. Her pulse felt off. Too many beats or the wrong cadence, something. Her right arm seemed to be pinned to the bed from the shoulder down. That would explain the “pins and needles”. A quick inspection gave the reason. Natalie was sound asleep snuggled into her side, using her shoulder for a pillow. The redhead seemed to fit there. The blonde didn’t really care to move but Tony would be knocking down her door any minute, so she needed to get ready to start the day. Unless he actually slept in although that was highly unlikely.   
So began the debate: lay there until Natalie wakes up or try and slip out without waking her? As Bennett lay there debating Natalie snuggled closer. Red hair tickling her nose. Every cell in her body decided right then that it had no desire to move, so her mind was made up. She was getting up.   
Sliding out of bed was harder than she thought. She tucked a pillow under the other woman’s head where her shoulder had been and forced herself to walk away. She grabbed a pair of track pants and tank top and headed down to the hotel gym to get in a morning run. Leaving a note for Tony so he wouldn’t wake up Natalie.   
A quick stretch and she jumped on one of the treadmills. Plugging in a pair of headphones she started a playlist of instrumental music. Mainly rock covers done with violins and cellos but there were a few variations on classics and some epic movie themes. She started the machine slow to warm up her stiff muscles, the room was empty due to it being a few minutes before 5. She lost herself in the rhythm of her steps as the treadmill increased it’s pace. Taking in the music and trying to bleed off the last of the nightmare that still clung. This morning it wasn’t near as bad as normal. She could still remember and felt the guilt but curiosity outweighed all of that. Why didn't she slip into oblivion this time? What had pulled her back from that edge?   
Then waking up with Rushman that close. Not that it was unpleasant. Just unexpected. She couldn’t entertain the thought of any relationship right now. Not even a crush. Not after Emily. Maybe not ever. She had told Jax she was taking a year to focus solely on herself and her career. No exceptions. No matter how exceptional Natalie Rushman was. Right?  
Thicker pajamas tonight so she wouldn’t die of frostbite. That was the only solid decision she had made in the millions of thoughts bouncing around her head during her run, most involving her current roommate. But there were benefits to her sleeping with the room that cold so maybe just live with the shorts and t-shirt one more night.   
When she made it back to the room the first thing Benn saw was Natalie’s sleepy smile. She must have woken up when Bennett opened the door. “Morning,” Natalie sounded as if she was still half asleep.  
Bennett gave a soft laugh as Natalie burrowed back into the covers. She walked to the edge of the bed. “Good morning, Nat.” Bennett tugged the edge of the blanket back slightly and Natalie gave an irritated groan. “I hate to be the one to break it to you but we need to get up. Tony will be looking for me.” Natalie pulled the covers back over her head. “Alright, I am going to go shower and head down stairs to eat, if you want to join me.” Natalie peaked out from under the covers and Bennett blushed. “For breakfast. Down stairs. In the cafe.”  
The redhead gave a mischievous smirk before ducking back under the sheets. “I will be ready by the time you get out,” her voice was muffled by the copious amount of blankets.   
Bennett couldn’t help but smile. She went to her bag and grabbed the clothes she needed for the day along with the belt and thigh holster. A quick shower and a swipe of gel and she was ready to go.   
When she stepped out the door she had to focus on not letting her jaw hit the floor. Natalie had changed as well. She now wore a form fitting dress that would be considered business attire and looked amazing. Bennett realized her jeans and fitted blazers would never stand up to the woman’s fashion. She would need better clothes if she ever got the chance to take Natalie out, but first she would have to get the guts to ask. Today she had opted for a Stark Industries t-shirt and flannel, knowing she would be heading to the track with Tony. Bennett noticed a fond smile grace the redheads lips. “What?”  
“Nothing you just reminded me of a friend,” she shook her head. “Looks like something he would wear.”  
“This isn’t my normal choice.” she tried to defend, lying through her teeth. “Tony said we were going to the track today, so I figured I didn’t wanna wear anything that I wouldn't wanna get grease on.” Stupid freakin accent.  
“Relax,” she stepped in closer, “never said it was a bad look. You wear it much better than he does.” She reached up, straightening the collar of Benn’s shirt. “Come on, let’s go eat. I’m starving.” She smiled leading the blonde to the door.   
Bennett grabbed her leather jacket on the way out. Trying to regulate her breathing again.   
Bennett pulled out Natalie’s chair at the table before taking her own seat. Their orders were taken and put on Stark’s tab.  
“I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable,” Natalie gave a sheepish smile. She read the confusion on Bennett’s face and decided to explain further. “When I woke up this morning I realized I hadn’t kept to my side of the bed. I was afraid I ran you off.”  
“No, I got up early to go for a run. You didn’t bother me.”  
“I prefer to sleep with lots of blankets and the room super cold, I guess I underestimated how cold it was going to get.” A soft blush dusted her cheeks as she admitted this.   
“The big bad Russian got cold,” Bennett smiled.   
“I wasn’t the only one, you were shaking too.” She saw Bennett’s expression faulter for just a second before resuming it’s normal grin.   
“Yeah well next time we have to share you aren’t allowed to touch the thermostat.” Bennett thanked the waiter as he left their meals.   
Natalie took the joke as a good sign. “You think we will have to room together again?”  
“It wouldn’t surprise me.” She shrugged.   
They continued talking through breakfast, that is until Tony walked around the corner. “Ladies, I trust you slept well.” He shot Bennett a wink.   
“Just fine, Mr. Stark” Natalie responded for the both of them.   
“Good to hear. Ms. Rushman I am going to have to steal Bennett for a while if you don’t mind.” He ruffled her hair. Bennett glared at him for the childish gesture. Making the gel hold was hard enough without his help.   
“Of course, Mr. Stark. I have a few things to go over before Ms. Potts arrives. Where would you like me to set reservations for lunch?” She knew her job well.   
“Anywhere in the resort you want, my treat.” He smiled at her. He dropped two gym bags in Bennet’s lap, “come on kid I reserved us a nearby boxing studio for the next couple of mornings.”  
Reserved not a boxing ring but the whole school, of course. Bennett threw back the last of her orange juice, rolling her eyes at Tony. Natalie let out a soft chuckle. “See ya later, Nat” she said softly enough that she could hear but not Tony.  
“Watch out for his sweep,” the redhead teased.  
“That was a one time thing,” Bennett said, hurrying to catch up to Tony hearing her laugh again.   
“So how was your night with your redhead?” Tony asked.  
“Boss, you do realize it is my job to keep everyone safe. I can’t do that if I don’t even know who all is here” her voice was laced with irritation.  
“Let me rephrase. How was she? You were all cuddly at breakfast, something had to happen.” She made no response. “Come on. She is the first woman you have looked at since Emily and I have literally had you in a room full of naked women and you never glanced at one of them.” Happy opened the car door for Tony.  
“Ms. Rushman and I may become friends over time,” she replied coolly as she climbed in the other side of the car.   
“Come on, Kid, we both know your redhead is hot as hell. You didn’t even try to make a move?” He questioned.  
“Tony, she’s not my anything. She isn’t anything more than possibly a friend. I’m not ready for anything else. Nothing is going to happen between me and Nat.” Bennett felt the heat creep up the back of her neck and tamped it down, correcting herself. “Ms. Rushman.”  
“Why not? You’re charming and charismatic, I would like to think I have been a good influence in that department. Besides she needs a reason to stay around, my assistants never seem to hang around very long.” Tony pulled the car up to an old brick building with a pair of boxing gloves painted on the side.   
“I’m not ready for anything like that. As far as your assistants go maybe if you didn’t sleep with them and then forget them they would hang around. How did you manage to not run Pepper off?”  
He seemed to think for a moment. “She never fell for my charm.”  
“So she has brains and morals,” Bennett opened the door to the gym and followed Tony in.  
“Or she’s gay but I highly doubt that.”   
Bennett dropped their bags down on one of the benches and they began to stretch for the morning’s workout. 

Bennett winced, she might have gone a little too hard on Tony. She noticed him slightly favoring his right leg. He made one too many "your redhead" comments and she kinda lost it. Which in the end only encouraged him that much more. So maybe she didn't feel too bad about his limp. They made sure to leave with enough time to shower and change before meeting Pepper.   
Stepping off the elevators Tony and Bennett were immediately greeted by the sight of Pepper and Happy coming through the lobby doors.   
Tensions seemed to rise more every time Pepper and Tony were in the same room. “Ms. Potts, good flight?” Bennett smiled at her friend.  
“As always,” she greeted the girl warmly. Her face dropped suddenly.   
“Mr. Stark, we have a few photographers here, if you and Ms. Potts wouldn’t mind.” Natalie entered the room turning the couple toward the few members of the press present.   
Press appeased and the schedule set, Bennett followed Tony and Pepper around the corner. To keep away wandering eyes. “What is she doing here?” Pepper snapped.  
“Assisting me. That’s what a personal assistant does correct?” Tony answered.  
“Where did she stay?” Pepper was fuming.  
“Here at the hotel with the rest of us. I had her book three rooms.” Tony’s nonchalance only made things worse.  
“Yes I saw a double and two singles. If you had a single and I have a single and Bennett and Happy are sharing the double, where did Ms. Rushman sleep?” Her tone was accusatory and she stepped closer to Tony with every sentence.  
Bennett had to stop a few people before they reached the hallway. Tony and Pepper fighting was the last publicity they needed.   
“Actually,” Tony’s voice took on a self-righteous tone, “Happy and I split the double Natalie and Bennett shared one of the singles.”  
Pepper didn’t have an immediate answer so Tony pushed past Benn headed toward the bar. Pepper followed only steps behind. Today was already more stressful than yesterday and it wasn’t even 10 o’clock yet. To make matters worse Justin Hammer sat only a few seats from Tony. Hammer ran a “rival” company. In the limited interaction Bennett had had with the man; he was just another Tony-Stark-wanna-be. They bantered back and forth for a time before Natalie came to let everyone know the table was ready.  
Pepper started toward the table, Tony tapped Bennett’s shoulder saying he would be right back. He headed toward the restroom.   
She watched Natalie as she and Pepper talked. Pepper made no secret what she thought of Natalie but as she watched them they appeared to be best friends. Either Pepper was a damn good actress or Natalie was charismatic as hell. The corners of Natalie’s lips quirked up in a smile and the blonde couldn’t stop hers from following the same path. Their eyes caught across the room, brown meeting green. Pepper followed her gaze and the two women shared a secret smile and a few whispers, before turning back to their work for the day.   
Tony grabbed her bicep as he re-entered the restaurant. “Come on, Kid. Let’s go to the track.”  
She nodded glancing over her shoulder at Natalie one more time as they left.   
At the track Bennett's blood immediately started to race. The sound of the engines and the smell of the exhaust fumes was enough to kick her adrenaline into high gear. A race like this was a completely new experience and it was awesome. Standing with the pit crew she got a good look at the car before the race. It was a work of art, but then again Tony bought it. So that wasn't surprising. Tony walking onto the track in a racing suit was her first clue that something was off.  
“What’s the use of having and owning a race car if you don’t drive it?” He tapped her shoulder with his helmet and climbed in the seat.   
“Boss, are you sure about this?” she grabbed the wheel.  
“Absolutely not,” he called as he pulled into traffic with the other cars.  
The first several turns of the race went great. After relaxing it was actually exhilarating watching Tony. She almost envied him.   
The crowd cheered the racers on. Excitement grew as they neared the start of the second lap. That was when Bennett noticed one of the track officials walk onto the track. His suit began to burn and sizzle melting off him down to his waist. An arc reactor was strapped to his chest and he held two whips of pure energy. He sliced through the first car that crossed the line. Then made his way walking into traffic with purpose. It didn’t take long to figure out what that purpose was; Tony. He sliced through the front of Tony’s car and stalked after the car as it flipped across the road.   
Tony managed to climb out of the car but he didn’t stand a chance against this man on his own. Not without Ironman. The man slapped the whips across the ground sending sparks flying. Knowing trouble was coming Bennett ducked behind a pillar and sent Happy a text “Tony needs the case.”   
The space was secluded enough. Happy needed time. Tony needed a distraction. She ran a hand through her hair knowing she was going to regret this. Bennett took a deep breath and tapped the cuffs first to the pendent then to each other. When she saw the cuffs extended up her arms forming the bracers, she knew it was game time.   
“You know,” her voice came out contorted. It didn't sound right, it was smoother with an almost musical quality. Tony could fix that later. “I thought dominatrix and archeology professors were the only ones that used whips anymore”  
“This no concern you. Leave now.” Without even turning he flicked one of the whips in her direction. Side stepping she threw her left arm out in a block. The whip was longer than it appeared or she had misjudged the distance between her and the man as the end caught her in the chest. She inhaled sharply, eyes watering. This was gonna hurt a lot. “Sorry, but I can’t do that.”  
He lashed one whip out followed immediately by the other. Bennett ducked one but the next hit wrapped up her arm burning wherever the bracer didn’t protect. He released her, kicking her across the track and stalking towards Tony. “Not much of a conversationalist, got it.”  
She had another idea. He continued to slash at Tony. It was probably not a great idea but still an idea.   
“Hey Grease Lightning, I said leave him alone.” Crap it was hard to make this voice sound intimidating. But it worked to a degree. The man turned his head and slung his whip towards her neck. She ducked, leaning back and let it reach its full extent before grabbing the tail with her gloved hand and jerking forward as hard as possible. As the man was pulled forward with the force, she chambered a kick in tight. As he flew forward she drove her heel into his stomach as deep as she could. Then spun out into another fighting stance. By this point Tony was back up.   
The two kept the man busy. Bennett took as many hits for Tony as she could and prayed Happy would get here soon. “Aim everything at the straps,” Tony instructed.   
From that point on every kick and every punch had one goal to loosen the straps holding the arc reactor in place. A well placed push kick had Tony tumbling across the ground.   
Bennett rushed in. Whips are a ranged weapon. They are hard to attack with from point blank range. She got in tight and refused to let up. Wearing out his body or trying to. She managed to hit a few pressure points and thought she might have been getting the upper hand until she felt the whip wrap around her ankle. Her feet were ripped from underneath her and her head hit the asphalt. She felt the gash and knew there was blood.   
The man grabbed her, lifting her from the ground by her neck and began to squeeze. He pulled her to his face. The smell of his putrid breath overwhelming her senses. “I told you to stay out of it little girl.” His grip tightened suddenly and she felt her trachea collapse. Followed by a few vertebrae sliding out of alignment. Her body went limp and he dropped her lifeless form.  
Knowing you will survive doesn't take away all the fear. For a moment she considered death as she waited for her windpipe to fix itself.   
At the sound of a car explosion she jumped and crawled back to her feet anxious to see a sign that Tony was alive. They were both against the fence, Tony and the man. She followed Tony’s gaze to see Happy speeding up the track towards them in the luxury car they were using while in Monaco. Happy must have gotten the text.   
The Rolls slammed the man into the fence Tony leaping out of the way at the last moment. Bennett's ears were still ringing and she was a little out of it as she made her way to the others. She didn’t remember much other than getting Pepper from the car, to safety and telling Happy to follow as the two men fought.   
Once she got several yards and several more concrete barriers between them and the fight, she had her first coherent thought. “Where’s Natalie?” They both looked confused. So she repeated the question. “Where is Natalie? She was with you two when I left.”  
“I don’t know. She didn’t come with us. I’m not sure where she went. How do you even…” Pepper’s confusion seemed to clear slightly, and morph into anger, “Bennett?”  
Bennett looked down seeing the bracers and remembering the rest of the costume that although invisible to her was still active. “Hey, Pep.” The authorities arrived to take the man away and Tony walked towards the others.   
Pepper fixed him with a glare. "We are going home now." Vacation was over.  
The police kept Tony at hand until he could speak to his attacker. Bennett waited at the station with him. When they came to lead him back he told Bennett to stay in the lobby. She reluctantly obeyed.   
She paced the length of the room more times than she cared to count as she waited for Tony to return. As she turned to begin another lap, the door to the cells and offices was pulled open hitting the wall with a sharp crack.   
Tony stalked by her and signalled for her to follow him to his car. Once buckled in they left for the airport where Pepper and the others would be waiting.   
“Boss, who was that guy?”  
“His name is Ivan Vanko. He claimed that the arc reactor was his father’s idea.”   
Tony looked as confused as Bennett felt. “But it’s not.”  
“No.”  
“So what did he want? Notoriety?”  
“He said...He wanted to take me down but he missed. We are fine, kid, don’t worry.” He gave her a smile.  
There was more to the story she knew but she let it slide. “Is he going to be a threat anymore?”  
“Nah, we are home free.” He revved the engine and sped the rest of the way to the air strip.


	7. Ch. 6 Start of Something Good

As their jet carried them back across the Atlantic, Bennett’s mind spun. There were so many things that didn’t add up, variables that didn’t make sense. Tony was acting strange. It had developed slowly over a couple of weeks. He was withdrawn, secretive. He offered only forced smiles and laughs. His voice was colder. He didn't speak to Pepper unless they were fighting and that was far more often than usual. He didn't seek out Happy just to share a stupid joke. While he still talked to Bennett if the topic was turned to him he found an excuse to leave.  
The newest problem was this Vanko character. She needed to run an extensive background search and discover all she could about his family and connections to Tony.   
And last but certainly not least, Natalie Rushman. Who is she?  
To solve the "Tony Problem" she would have to get him to talk. Which would more than likely require alcohol, lots of alcohol. She didn’t have to worry about getting drunk herself. As long as she didn’t down full bottles like shots she would be fine. Her body treated alcohol like a poison, diluting it as quickly as possible to keep it from damaging anything internal. That had it's good sides and drawbacks. Those issues wouldn't be resolved on the plane so she pushed them back.  
The other two she could solve on her own. All she needed was a high speed internet connection, her laptop, and privacy. BOBbie would make that process faster and easier. A laptop and internet connection were easy enough. The privacy though...Tony and Pepper sat across the cabin after their last fight they refused to speak to each other but also refused to move. A stalemate. Happy was in the back of the cabin snoring loud enough to wake the dead so that wasn’t an option. The only other spot was the cockpit. When she had gone to check on the pilot earlier she had found Natalie there as well. They had been talking and laughing. Bennett had been a millisecond from making her presence known when she heard the pilot asking if Natalie wanted to go out some time. She didn’t care to hear the answer.   
So there would be no answers, no solutions until they got back home.   
She reached in her bag and pulled out a case with a pair of aviators with mirrored lenses. These were Tony’s answer to VR. When the next generation of virtual reality headsets were released Bennett had been excited and impressed with the new technology. Tony said they were subpar. The conversation ended with Tony determined to prove he was right and Stark tech was still the best.   
So now Bennett had a fully immersive virtual reality experience packed in simple aviator sunglasses. A complete 3 dimensional experience with any video game, movie, or tv show you could want. Realistic graphics and a full 360 degree view. His system allowed you to view the movie from any angle. A “Stark original” software program filled in the blanks and built the single screen image into an immersive landscape. Action movies were so much better when you were fully surrounded by the action. Advance wireless earbuds gave personal surround sound, Tony’s attempt to beat out the competition in yet another area.   
Over all the build, while functional and impressive, was far too expensive to mass produce.   
Bennett relaxed into her seat as the opening credits began to roll across the lenses. She was just reaching the climax of the movie when her glasses were gently pulled off her eyes. Natalie smiled down at her, “hey.”   
“Hey,” Bennett blinked several times allowing her eyes to adjust to the light.  
“Nice nap,” Natalie questioned.  
Bennett let out a soft chuckle, “actually I was just enjoying a movie.” Natalie looked between Bennett and the sunglasses. “Here,” Bennett pulled Natalie into the seat beside her before taking the glasses and carefully sliding them into place for Natalie. Bennett reached over tapping the earpiece on the right side of the glasses. She heard the movie start up again through the earbuds.   
Natalie’s sceptical expression changed as the pictures flicked to life. Her jaw dropped slightly as she turned her head in Bennett’s direction. Instead of the picture simply staying fixed to the lenses the camera seemed to pan with her taking in the rest of the scene as she turned. She watched for a minute before handing them back to Bennett. “A present from Tony?”  
“Yeah,” she replied as Natalie handed the glasses back. “How far out are we?” She wrestled her backpack out from under her seat and dug through it, finally pulling out a glasses case and a tablet.   
“Not quite halfway across the Atlantic,” she sat straight backed in her seat. Bennett studied her closely. She always sat so still, unnaturally still. “Mr. Stark said he wanted to stop in New York before heading back to Malibu. So we have a few more hours.” She gave Bennett a soft smile. “I have some paperwork I have to finish so I’ll leave you to your movie.” She gracefully pushed herself from the chair.   
“You don’t have enough paperwork.”  
The odd statement stopped the redhead.  
“Still a couple hours from Malibu and Tony and Pepper have already fought twice.” She offered as explanation. At Natalie’s blank expression she continued. “With that much time, Tony is bound to get in another “disagreement” with Pepper,” she dug through the bag again. “If you are available he will drag you into it. I know from experience. So the best policy is to make sure you are busy.” She finally pulled a small cylindrical case out of the bag with a triumphant smile. She offered it to Natalie before turning back to the tablet, pulling up the movie she had previously been watching. “So headphones and a movie with me or you can fake sleeping like Happy.”  
Natalie tried to hand back the earbuds. “Really I think I will be okay.”  
“Humor me,” she nudged the buds back into Natalie’s hand. “You work too hard. Take a break, just this once.”   
Natalie considered her options. Her eyes seem to have an extra sparkle to them before her lips crept up into a smile. She slipped the buds in and scooted a little closer to Bennett to share the screen.  
Bennett noticed the spark before the smile. It happened every time. She wanted to see it again but knew they came few and far between. “Pick your poison,” she slid up the screen with the list of movies so Natalie could choose. 

They were finishing their third movie, as they neared Malibu, or almost finishing. There was a good twenty minutes of screen time left when Bennett shut the movie down.   
Natalie looked from the screen to her, “what happened?”  
“What?” Bennett looked genuinely puzzled.   
“The movie wasn’t over.”  
“I always stop it there.” A slight blush crept up her neck as she began. “Some movies the characters just don’t get the ending they deserve.”  
“Why not just not watch the movie?” Natalie asked.   
She nodded to the screen indicating the movie they had just watched. “Man on Fire is an amazing movie but Crease deserved a better ending. I have two or three other movies that I do the same thing. I think they deserve better.”  
“So you just rewrite the ending.”  
“Yup,” she let the word draw out slightly.   
Natallie just shook her head, amused at the thought.   
“Wheels down in 20,” Tony called and Bennett began to pack her things back into her bag. 

There was a long list of things that needed to be done in preparation for Tony’s birthday party in three days, but not enough to bleed too far into Bennett’s evenings. So during the day she checked security plans and helped Pepper as much as possible. As soon as the night shift was in position she retired to her room.   
BOBbie connect us to the Shadow Server. With the help of BOBbie and JARVIS, Bennett had secured a private server that not even Tony could access. They also lent a hand in procuring the information she needed. All three nights she searched the same things. Ivan Vanko and Natalie Rushman.  
On Ivan Vanko she traced his family history first. His father, Anton, had worked for Stark industries alongside Tony’s father. He worked with Mr. Stark on the original arc reactor but was not the sole designer. As Ivan had insinuated.   
On paper Ivan appeared to be as smart if not smarter than his father. He was an accomplished physicist and a talented engineer. His reproduction of the reactor in Monaco was enough evidence to back up the academic claims attributed to him.   
His father was deported from the U.S. having been caught selling the arc reactor blueprints on the black market. The U.S.S.R. demanded he develop an arc reactor for them as well. When he failed he was shipped to Siberia. Anton lived in squalor. He became an alcoholic and abusive to his son.   
Ivan had an impressive rap sheet as well. Imprisoned for 15 for selling plutonium. He had been suspect in several other illegal weapons deals but there was never enough evidence to make it stick. A couple of assassinations that were credited to him but not proven. Another thing the father and son had in common was they were both dead. A death certificate for Ivan Vanko was dated less than 24 hours after they left Monaco. Information on Vanko was easy enough to find as most of it was public knowledge.   
Natalie Rushman however was a completely different story. Hours of searching pulled up the same results over and over. There were only a handful of documents for Natalie Aleece Rushman that matched the woman she knew. A standard background check and simple files that would pass for an employers search. The files were extensive enough to pass even Tony’s extensive searches, even though she was sure he stopped searching as soon as he found the modeling photos.   
Combing through a little deeper, with assistance, revealed the date the documents were created. Four months. The files had only been active for four months. Which meant that Natalie was not who she claimed to be.   
The woman had to come from somewhere so Bennett, BOBbie, and JARVIS widened the search. Bennett found only vague traces of personas that might be Natalie. Tatiana Sokolova. Irina Zlataryova. Laura Mathers. Nadie Roman. Natalia Shostakova. All of those names though revealed no more than Natalie Rushman did. The woman was a ghost. Bennett needed to clear her head. Nothing did that better than a little engine grease.

Down in the garage Tony heard a loud crash followed by broken curses. He followed the sound to find Bennett holding her right hand. The ratchet on the floor beside her bike explained her predicament. She busted her knuckles taking apart the transmission on one of her bikes.   
So the question was why was she taking it apart? Boredom? Stress relief? She was working out a problem. Had to be. Something she couldn’t just think through.   
“Hey kid, what’s up?” He threw her a shop towel.  
She caught it, wrapping it around her hand. “The transmission was sticking.” She sent a glare at the bike.   
“Really? That’s the one you are rebuilding for your dad right?” She nodded. He hopped up on the work table nearest her. “You rebuilt that transmission two weeks ago and it was perfect. What’s really going on?”  
“Too many things. But nothing for you to worry about, Boss.” She picked up the pieces of the transmission she had dropped. She moved it to the worktable and began to break it down.   
Tony grabbed one of the bolts she had just pulled and tossed it in the air, catching it before repeating the process. “Girl troubles?”  
“You could say that.” The nut she was turning gave a loud squeak as she broke it loose. “But it’s nothing to worry about.”  
“Is it your redhead?”  
“Nothing to worry about.” She repeated. “Don’t you have a party to get ready for? Tomorrow’s the big day.”  
Tony let out a long breath. “Don’t remind me. So...bucket list. What would you cross off it, if you knew you only had a month left?”  
Bennett looked over to him. “Left of what?”  
“Your life. This is your chance to fulfill one last dream, tie up loose ends, and go out with a bang.”  
She thought before answering. “Finish dad’s bike and take it to him. Write down every bit of advice I could think of for Zach because I would miss his graduation. Visit Nora. Try and patch things with Leo. Spend the rest of my time here with you guys. Probably plan a bit of mischief. Break a few of Pepper’s rules, nothing too big though. Steal one of your suits for a day. Few harmless pranks on Happy, lego in his shoe or cutting a few stitches on the seam of his pants so when he sits they split. Leave as many good memories as I could.” Her smile grew at the end of her list.  
“Nothing with Rushman?” Tony asked.   
“The way I see it, if I leave things as they are then she mourns a coworker and if I am lucky a friend. If I try something more it may fail and destroy what we have currently. If it works and we have that connection, then I am possibly the worst human on the planet. Starting a relationship knowing I would hurt her sooner than later.” She shook her head, “I couldn’t do that. What about you?”  
“I have no idea,” he chuckled. “You want some help with this.” He nodded toward the transmission splayed across the worktable.   
“Sure,” she shared his smile before they began their work. They had developed a rhythm over the last year and worked together fluidly. They talked, sharing stories they rarely told anyone. Laughter came easily and their individual worries seemed to drift away if only for that few minutes.   
The world could be falling apart at the seams but this always felt right, it was their safe place. As the question piled from the past few days began to fall, Tony would be her rock, and she would be his. Between the two of them they would set the world right again.


	8. Ch. 7 Drinkin' Bone

Tony’s parties were always over the top but his birthday was in a whole other league. Two hours before the party Bennett found herself in his room helping Tony decide which suit to wear. “Why don’t I just go with an Ironman?” he asked.   
“If I let you wear an Ironman suit you will end up in trouble,” Bennett shot the idea down. “What about this one,” she pulled a grey pant suit and jacket.  
“I don’t know,” Tony reached for a black pinstripe. “You really don’t think I can behave?”  
“No and I think I can find plenty of people to back me up on that,” she pulled a maroon colored suit from the closet. They both looked at it, “why do you even have this?” He took it from her hand chunking it in a corner of the room to be properly disposed of later.   
“You know let’s not focus on me for a minute,” he pulled a garment bag from the back of the closet. He held it out to her, “a gift, something for you to wear tonight.”   
Bennett took it with a skeptical look. “Boss, I don’t wear dresses. I don’t care how much you spent on it.”   
“It’s not a dress. Besides if I bought you a dress as a gift I would be giving it to Rushman.”   
He unzipped the bag. Inside was a black fitted suit. Pulling it out Tony showed it to her. Tailored to Benn’s preferences. It was fitted but not too tight. It would be relaxed enough to feel comfortable. The jacket was made to remain open, a crimson shirt sat underneath. “There’s a vest the same color, and Pepper picked out a couple other shirts. Keep the jacket or go with the vest either way. It’s versatile. ”   
“Boss, this is… I mean, thanks,” she rubbed the expensive material between her fingers.  
“I thought somebody might appreciate it,” he winked.   
“That’s not the goal tonight. I have to work. Keeping you in line is a full time job. I can’t afford distractions tonight,” she pulled the bag back over the suit, zipping it up.   
“Come on, Benn,” he pushed the bag back towards her.   
She took the bag shaking her head, “not tonight. Tonight I need to be focused so jeans and a nice button down.”   
“Come on. Just think about it. What have you got to lose?” He shrugged.   
Bennett sighed heavily. “I can’t.” She let out a weak smile, meeting Tony’s gaze.   
“Mr. Stark your guest will be here within the hour” Natalie entered the room, Bennett and Tony both wore uncharacteristically serious expressions. “… Sorry, did I interrupt something.”   
“No,” Bennett pulled up a mask of a smile, “I told him no Ironman tonight so make him stick to that. Boss, I am gonna go check on Happy. We need to go over protocol for tonight. Ain't got the chance to talk… haven't. I haven't had the chance to talk...to him." She turned and headed out the door. “Tony, no Ironman.”   
Tony watched her leave with a wide smile. "Ain't" he chuckled.

Back in her room Bennett looked the suit over again. Maybe Nat would like it. Tony would give her the night off if she asked. Could it really hurt?  
One night to ignore responsibility. One party, trying to earn a few smiles from Natalie. She could give herself one night. The woman didn’t know she knew anything.   
The light from her computer screen caught her attention. Then again what did Bennett really know.   
She ran her hand through her hair before hanging the garment bag in the back of her closet. She slipped on a pair of white stitched jeans and one of the new button downs Pepper had bought her. Leather jacket over her arm she headed back down stairs.

Bennett trailed Tony through the party. He shook hands and smiled. Some of the more attractive guests earned a hug. Scanning the crowd Bennett picked out familiar faces. She could name every male in attendance and about 75% of the females. Everyone had to go through the multiple security checkpoints to get in so they should be safe. Tony had said to relax. That wasn’t going to happen.   
“Ah, Ms. Rushman, you look lovely as ever,” Tony gave a too bright smile as the redhead approached.   
“Mr. Stark, happy birthday,” she held a hand out to him which he promptly ignored pulling her into a hug. The hug seemed to last too long. Bennett shifted uncomfortably. Across the room Ms. Potts seemed to have noticed the length of Tony’s hug as well. Natalie finally pulled away handing Tony a small wrapped gift and one last smile. Another guest immediately took her place.   
Natalie stepped past Tony stopping next to Bennett. “I thought for sure Tony would give you tonight off.” She stood beside the blonde leaving Bennett a full view of the room.   
“Wouldn’t take it if he did. My time off will be in the morning when he is hungover,” she shot the other woman a smile. Bennett had always hated that smile. One side was higher than the other, creating a dimple in one cheek. Lopsided. Emily had always found it irritating and tried her hardest to change it. Tony called it charming. Bennett thought it looked ridiculous.   
“Well, Benn, I feel safer already knowing you are watching my back,” she gave the bodyguard's hand a light squeeze and leaned closer so she could clearly be heard. “Try to have a little fun, Benn.”  
“I will try and fit it in.” Bennett turned to look at her fully. She felt vastly underdressed. “You look amazing tonight by the way.” A light blush dusted her cheeks and Benn felt the smile coming back. “Enjoy the party, Nat.”  
She gave her hand another squeeze before disappearing into the crowd.   
“She likes knowing you are watching her back,” Tony bumped the girl's shoulder. “See kid she is totally into you.”  
“No she isn’t Boss,” she spotted Natalie across the room a swarm of guys already around her. “She has way better options than me.”  
“Don’t sell yourself short, make a move. Get her a drink or purposely make conversation. Ask her to dance, it’s a party, perfect excuse.”  
“I have a job to do tonight,” she returned her gaze to scanning the room.   
“She would have liked the suit,” he said under his breath, shaking another guest’s hand.   
“Stark,” she scolded, trying to invoke some of the intimidation that Pepper used when they were in trouble.   
“At least take time to “watch her back”, it’s not a bad view,” he chuckled at the blush rising to her cheeks and then led them deeper into the throng of party goers.  
The first hour passed without incident. Tony drank and mingled. Dancing with every partner except Pepper.   
“Lancaster,” the girl turned at the sound of her name, seeing one of the extra security guards she had hired for the night. “There is a woman at the security gate, no invitation.”  
She cut him off, “no invitation, she doesn’t get in.”  
“She sent me to get you, says you will let her in,” the man continued.   
“Fine.” BOBbi connect me to Happy.   
Connected she was still getting used to the voice echoing around her head.   
“Happy, keep an eye on Tony there is a problem at the front gate.” If it is Emily I swear on all that is holy she will rue the day.  
Would you like me to add “murder Emily” to your “to do” list.   
I never said murder, BOBbi. They arrived at the ground floor of the condo and stepped out the front door to the first checkpoint.   
“Bennett!”   
She would know that voice anywhere. “Nora?” She rushed to the first checkpoint. She pulled her sister through security. She wrapped her in a hug.   
Elanora Lancaster only stood five foot tall and didn’t weigh 125 soaking wet so her little sister towered over her. Her hair a deep brown and eyes icy blue. They didn’t look much alike. Nora took after her birth mother and Bennett took after her own. Neither of them carried many of their father’s features. Other than Bennett’s smile and Nora’s pale complexion. “What are you doing here?” Bennett beamed at her sister.  
Nora engulfed her sister in another hug, “I wanted to surprise you in New York but when I got there the secretary said you were all here so… I came here.”  
Bennett laughed softly. “I am so glad to see you. Come on.” She led Nora first to her room to drop off her bags and then to the party.   
“Nora,” Tony called seeing the women walk in, “what a pleasant surprise. It’s been ages.” He kissed her cheek.  
“Mr. Stark, I trust you have been taking care of little Benn.” She hugged him returning the kiss. How they got along so great, Bennett didn’t know. They had only met twice before.   
“Please, call me Tony. And of course I have been taking care of baby Benn,” he ruffled the younger Lancaster’s hair. “Are you staying with us for a while?”   
He offered Elanora his arm and she accepted as he led her towards the bar. “For a few days I hope, if that is alright with you, Tony.” Bennett followed, catching Happy’s eye to let him know she was back.  
Elanora and Bennett caught up off and on through the night. The more she drank the more talkative she became. It wasn’t just a social call. Apparently the phone calls she had made home didn’t convince her family that she was ok. So they had sent Nora to check up on her.  
Two hours after her arrival Nora was dead on her feet. She was exhausted and jet lagged. Probably hadn’t eaten recently. She activated BOBbi again to talk to Happy. “Hap, can you take her to my room so she can sleep and have someone bring her something to eat.”  
“Will do, kid.” She watched as he led her sister through the crowd and out toward the private living quarters.   
Tony was a step beyond drunk. He stumbled towards Benn. “So with Nora sleeping in your room you won’t mind if I flirt with Rushman tonight, right?” No she did not want him around Natalie. “Thanks, kid,” he cut her off before she could answer, patting her shoulder. He seemed to sober slightly as he made his way toward the woman.   
Bennett followed him across the room. “Tony” she grabbed his shoulder and spun him back around.   
“I am not going to do anything with her,” he said his hands up in a gesture of surrender, “just flirt a bit. I’ll follow the “Bro Code.” No harm, no foul.” Tony shrugged off her hand, pushing through the crowd toward Natalie.  
They talked and danced. Tony leaning far too close to Natalie. You don’t have to be practically biting someone’s ear for them to hear you. No matter how loud a party was. She watched them, apparently focusing on Tony and Natalie more than she thought. She jumped feeling a hand touch her shoulder. She grabbed the hand and pinned the arm attached to it behind the person’s back.   
“Hey, hey, Benn. Chill,” recognizing the voice she released Rhodey from the hold.   
“Sorry Rhodes,” she took a deep breath.  
“Bit jumpy,” he straightened his blazer. “What’s got you so tense?”  
“Nothing. I am totally relaxed,” she brushed the bangs that were falling across her forehead back. The gel apparently wasn’t holding.   
“Relaxed, ha. Right, sure. Look kid. I know watching Tony can be tough. Take a break. I got him for a few.” Rhodey smiled giving her a reassuring pat.   
She did as he suggested heading to the balcony. The warm smell of the salty sea air floated on the wind. She inhaled deeply the cooler air calming after so many bodies. She examined the sky. One thing she could always count on, no matter where in the world she went. She looked up, finding the constellations one by one. “Hey kid,” someone bumped her shoulder. The blonde playfully rolled her eyes turning her gaze toward Natalie. The other woman chuckled softly, “sorry, Benn, you get caught up in the stars and it's hard to bring you back to earth.” She shot a teasing smile. "It's enough to make a girl jealous."  
"So I have been told. Emily is starting a support group for it I think." She focused on the skies again, leaning against the railing of the balcony. Bennett was hyper aware of her proximity to Rushman. She could practically feel every movement. And that was amplifying her anxiety. "I try to take them in whenever I can. You can't see them very well from Stark tower." The relaxation that Rhodey prescribed was gone. Bennett could feel her heart pounding and the blood rushing through her veins.   
It is amazing the constant chemical adjustments your body makes as your environment changes. Some things are too strong or happen too quick for your body to transition smoothly so you feel the reaction more. Natalie Rushman was one of those things in Bennett’s environment.   
"That's understandable," her voice drew Bennett in. "They remind you of home. We tend to hold on to reminders of things we love."  
"What's something you hold on to?"   
"Uhh", Natalie leaned back from the railing an almost nervous or embarrassed smile on her lips. "Never had a lot to hold on to. But there is one spot that I love to watch the sunset from, by this little pond. There’s a tree with a tire swing off to the left. It's one of the few places that really feel like home."  
"That's a little more specific than my stars. Harder to find," she took in the woman’s profile.   
"It doesn't always have to be something you can physically see to remind you," she was lost in her thoughts for a moment.   
A comfortable silence settled between them. She really didn't want to break it. After grappling with this problem for the last three days she needed an answer. "Is there any part of Nat that was real?" her voice came out weak, she cringed at the sound.   
Natalie’s head snapped toward Benn, "what?"  
Faking the confidence she lacked Bennett met her gaze. "Natalie Aleece Rushman doesn't exist, at least the one I know. What I could find says that that name and persona only came into use about four months before you walked into the gym that day." Natalie’s expression was unreadable. "I know how to use more than Google to search." The blonde tried to smile. “So who are you?”.   
"I'm not here to hurt Tony if that's what you are worried about," her face was stoic.   
"You've had plenty of opportunities to do so if that was your plan you would have done it by now. For some reason I doubt you are here for corporate espionage. So why are you here?" She made no response. Her face was a blank slate. Bennett matched her stare as long as she could. The minutes felt like hours, she bit back the tears stinging behind her eyes. "Please Nat," she gave a quiet chuckle shaking her head. Nat probably wasn't even her name. She turned to head back to the party. She had left Rhodey in charge of Tony for long enough.   
"Benn...Bennett," the blonde turned around at her voice, "I never meant…"  
There was a loud crash from inside the house. "I already took the suit from Tony once tonight," she grumbled heading back toward the party seeing the guest throw a champagne bottle for Tony to shoot like skeet.   
"Bennett," she looked at Natalie one more time. "My name is Natasha. A lot of what Natalie told you is real. Give me a chance to explain. Please." The last word sounded foriegn on her lips.   
Bennett watched Natalie’s eyes, stepping closer. Hesitantly she reached out for her hand. Natalie raised one eyebrow in question. Bennett always knew her own body but on occasion she could read others if she had contact.   
When Natalie placed her hand in Bennett’s, she could feel the callouses on the woman’s fingers and strength in her hand not common to legal and secretarial work. More than that she felt the connection to Natalie, her pulse was as natural to read as her own. Bennett locked eyes with Natalie. "Tell me one more time."  
She looked even more confused. "Bennett, I know I lied…"  
The blonde cut her off, "you want me to trust you, tell me your name."  
She let out an exasperated sigh, "Natasha."  
Bennett nodded, dropping her hand. It wasn't conclusive, but she believed that much at least. Her name was Natasha, everything else might still be a lie.   
Bennett jumped as Rhodey's voice rang out telling everyone to get out. She rushed back to the party. Inside she saw not only Tony in his Ironman suit but Rhodey in one as well. BOBbi I need voice comms to Happy.   
Of course, Kid.  
"Hap, get everyone as far away as possible. About to be a nasty round of Wrestlemania up here."   
Bennett started to escort the last remaining guest out as Tony and Rhodey started trading punches. Pepper’s face as Happy had pulled her away was heartbreaking. She had obviously tried to disarm the situation but Tony seemed to be on a self-destruct mode recently. “Happy, what about Nora?” She yelled through Bobbi’s comms .   
“Sorry a little busy, Kid. Can’t get back upstairs,” Happy’s voice came back through the com.   
“Crap!” There were still a few people huddled under overturned pieces of furniture and behind the bar. She had a choice to make, take care of the last of the civilians or go get her sister? She let out a roar of frustration and took a step towards the closest person. Could they not think for themselves?  
“Where is she?” Natalie came out of nowhere. She was beside Bennett, or Natasha was.   
The blonde shot her a harsh glare. “Who?”  
“Your sister. Elanora, Tony introduced us earlier. I heard Happy can’t help. Let me.” She looked into Bennett’s eyes pleading with her. Let her make this one tiny step to fixing this mess.   
“My room. Down one floor, take a right, third door on the left,” she gave her the directions. “Get her out and get yourself safe.” Natasha left with a nod. Bennett went back to clearing the room.   
One of the men was pinned under a bookcase, most were just too scared or shocked to move. She helped move them to the stairs and down toward Happy and safety. She was tempted to leave the couple making out in the closet but her conscience got the better of her. The room was finally clean so time to try and disarm Tony.   
Even though she had the cuffs and necklace, she didn’t think they would help much. Not much shield wise unless he upgraded them since Monaco. Tony and Rhodey threw each other around the room, knocking over furniture and crashing through walls. They each shot at the other blasting each other across the room. Tony hit the wall beside her, shattering glass and sheetrock all over the both of them. “Boss! Stop!” Tony ignored her.   
Bennett ran after him and jumped on his back. He knocked her off and onto the closest couch. He pointed one finger at her as if to tell her to stay down.   
She got back up and went to run between the two, only to be pushed back by Rhodey this time. She stumbled back, hitting her head on the bar. When she got back up a small trickle of blood was sliding down her temple. She went to try and stop them again only to be stopped by a hand grabbing her arm. Nat was at her side again pulling her back from the fight. She tried to pull her arm from the other woman’s grip but she held tight. A shot hit the wall inches above Nat’s head. Instinctively Bennett pulled her closer protecting Nat with her own body. Natasha wasn’t safe so Bennett knew they had to move.   
They got down the stairs and out of the house when they heard the charge of a blaster. Not just one, two. She pulled Nat away from the house as quickly as possible. A light built as the sound intensified. The ground began to shake under thier feet. Bennett grabbed Natasha and pulled her close trying to shield her from whatever was coming. There was a shockwave. Glass and brick debris flew everywhere. They were knocked to the ground.   
As the dust settled Bennett picked herself up off the ground. She saw one Ironman suit fly off in one direction and one in the other seconds later. She helped Natasha up, checking her face for cuts and scrapes. Her dress hadn’t provided much protection from the drive when she hit the ground. Bennett slipped out of her jacket, knocking any loose glass off the leather and draped it over her shoulders wincing in sympathy. “You okay?”   
She nodded. “You?” Nat reached up brushing blonde hair from Bennett’s temple, trying to get a look at the cut there. The blood had mostly dried. Bennett knew the cut had healed by now, so she had to brush Nat’s concern off.   
“I’m fine,” she pulled Natasha’s hand back down. Letting out a long breath she tried to smile, “I guess I need to go find Tony.” She headed towards the garage.  
“Benn, here,” Nat shrugged off the jacket.   
“Hang on to it,” this time she did smile, “I’ll get it back later.” She took a few steps forward, invading Nat’s space as she reached into the pocket of her jacket grabbing the keys. She felt her own pulse jump and heard Natasha’s breathing hitch slightly. Her smile grew as she stepped back toward the garage.   
“Benn, I really am sorry,” Natasha apologized.  
“I never believed you were really just a notary,” she tossed the keys up and caught them, shooting her a wink. Bennett cranked her bike and slipped on her helmet. By the time she wheeled the bike out of the garage Natasha was nowhere to be found. Nothing left to do now but to find Tony.   
BOBbi I need you to help me track Tony. The line was silent for a few seconds.  
Sorry, kid. I am afraid Mr. Stark has blocked me. I might be able to with the help of Master JARVIS.   
Go for it.   
“Good evening Ms. Bennett. Tracking may take a while. It appears that BOBbi is right. Mr. Stark does not want to be found,” Jarvis replied. “I suggest you start heading in a north eastern direction. While BOBbi and I start trying to track him.” JARVIS projected a GPS navigation system as a heads-up display on the visor of her helmet.   
“Thanks, J,” she pulled out of the drive and headed toward the highway. 

AN:The end of Ironman 2 is close. From here the story will be a mix of the MCU story line, ideas from the comics and my own personal ideas. If you have have any comic events or villains, or have any ideas for events or villains of your own please send them in. I have a few more plot openings

**Author's Note:**

> Any and all comments and ideas about this story are welcome. I hope you enjoyed this introduction to Bennett and this story.


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